Florida A&M University and Florida State University College of Engineering partnered with For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) Robotics to host a regional competition in Tallahassee.
The event featured robots built by high school students from across the Southeast, plus one team from Hawaii.
“In my 17 years of involvement with FIRST I’ve seen first hand the impact it makes on students’ lives and their growth as people, innovators, and citizens,” said Wendy Austin, FIRST Regional Director for North and Central Florida.
Sustainable Tallahassee:FAMU-FSU engineers tackle climate resilience with research
In case you missed it:Amazon’s goals for Florida include delivery robots and Amazon Fresh stores, official says
The teams competed in competitions demonstrating their robot’s effectiveness by playing a game called “rapid react.”
Students piloted their mechanical creations around an area where they picked up bouncing cargo and shot it into a target, trying to score as many points as possible.
“The ways that I’ve seen these kids grow in their confidence, ability to advocate for themselves and technical knowledge, just reinforces for me how this program isn’t about building robots as much as it’s about building students into the best versions of themselves.” Austin said.
This is the third regional event to be hosted in Florida with the first being in Orlando in 1999 and the second taking place 10 years ago in South Florida.
Reach photojournalist Alicia Devine at adevine@tallahassee.com or on Twitter @alicia_c_devine. Check out her photos on Instagram @adevinephotography.
Never miss a story: Subscribe to the Tallahassee Democrat using the link at the top of the page.
Credit: Source link