Local robotics team competes on international stage

The 4H Palouse Area Robotics Team competed against 400 other high school robotic teams in the world in St. Louis, Mo., at the end of April and finished with a tournament record of five wins and five losses after three days of tough competition.

“2014 was an incredible season for the team exceeding all of the goals we had set. Through a process of condensed learning, hard work, creativity and focus, the team produced a robot with a level of innovation and design elegance that far exceeded our expectations," said Glenn Woodhouse, the team’s lead mentor.

This was the first time that a Whitman County robotics team, also known as the FIRST Robotics Competition Team #4061, The Sciborgs, has qualified to compete in the F.I.R.S.T. World Championship Competition.

This team of three years is made up of 19 students from five Palouse area high schools and a dozen professional mentors.

Their competitoin credits also include winning of Eastern Washington University district competition, placing as a finalist at the Central Washington University district competition, placing 10th in the Pacific Northwest Region. F.I.R.S.T. (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is celebrating its 25th year anniversary this year as a non-profit organization devoted to helping young people discover and develop a passion for science, technology, engineering and math.

The team’s robot, “Thunderstruck,” was sponsored by individuals and local businesses from around the Palouse with Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, McGregor, Digilent Inc., Decagon Devices, Kirkpatrick Utgaard & Perry and Almota Elevator being the main corporate sponsors. Grants from Washington OSPI and the Bezos Foundation were also critical to allowing the team to go this far.