- Students from Palm Harbor University High School will be participating in the global robotics championship scheduled for next week.
- They wrapped up their practice for the week prior to traveling to Texas for the event.
- Groups are assigned to collaborate on designing, constructing, and programming robots aimed at tackling a particular task, such as collecting blocks and placing them into an elevated bin.
PALM HARBOR, Fla. - The freshmen robotics squad from Palm Harbor University High School is set to participate in the global championships taking place in Houston next week.
Team Voltaris conducted their last rehearsal on Wednesday prior to departing for Texas the following week.
The school has opted for a new approach this year by assembling a single "beginner" team comprised of 12 ninth-grade students.
What they're sayingOccasionally, when they’re part of teams that include seniors, they can feel somewhat eclipsed and may become hesitant and anxious about jumping into the learning process,” remarked Gianna Zengel, who sponsors robotics at Palm Harbor University High School and teaches mathematics. “To address this, we opted to group them together so they have no option. There’s nobody for them to hide behind.”
Before joining, I had zero experience with robotics or anything connected to it,” said Sophia Swerdloff, the head builder and driver for Team Voltaris, who is 14 years old. She shared with FOX 13, “I basically signed up when I saw the club, and all my current knowledge has been acquired within one season.”
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Every year, groups collaborate to develop, construct, and code robots aimed at tackling particular challenges. In this current year, Team Voltaris engineered a machine capable of performing multiple duties such as collecting blocks and placing them into an elevated bin.
"Just like our claw: we created it using computer software, then had it printed out, and now it’s a crucial component of our robot's performance," explained Ritchel Mesidor, the lead programmer for Team Voltaris and only 15 years old.
What's nextThe 2025 FIRST World Championship is scheduled to take place in Houston from April 16 to 19. The institution informed FOX 13 that FIRST, an acronym for "For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology," is a worldwide nonprofit organization that involves students in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields via competitive robot-building contests.
"I feel accomplished. There’s also some apprehension – it’s quite extensive – however, I believe irrespective of that, it will turn out to be an incredibly fantastic experience," Swerdloff stated.
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Mesidor noted, "Transitioning from the state level to the global stage is quite an extensive undertaking. However, we are feeling very enthusiastic about it. This will be our inaugural experience at this level. Our aim is to participate, enjoy ourselves thoroughly, perform to the best of our abilities, and we are genuinely thrilled for this opportunity."
This signifies Palm Harbor University High School's consecutive appearance at the world championship for the second year running and their fourth time in six years. The Pinellas County institution claimed the world title back in 2019.
Ariel Plasencia from FOX 13 gathered the details for this report.
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