Falkon Academy robotics team places in top 25 in international competition

Folsom Cordova Unified School District's Falkon Academy VEX IQ robotics team, Generation Artemis, recently placed third in the California North Regional Championship and qualified to compete at the VEX World Championship in Dallas, Texas, from April 29-May 2. VEX is a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) learning system to help middle and high school students develop problem-solving and computational thinking skills, according to www.vexrobotics.com. The VEX Robotics competition prepares students to become future innovators with 95 percent of participants reporting an increased interest in STEM subject areas and pursuing STEM-related careers. "Northern California has one of the most competitive robotics regions internationally. Of the 12 spots that qualified for VEX World Championship in Dallas, Generation Artemis is the only team outside the Bay Area representing Northern California in the Middle School Division," said team coach and mentor Veronica Griffin. In Dallas, Generation Artemis competed against teams from Japan, Morocco and Paraguay and placed 25th overall, which the team considers an accomplishment. VEX competitions are recognized as the largest and fastest-growing robotics programs for elementary, middle, high schools and college-aged students around the world, according to its website. There are more than 23,000 VEX teams from 58 countries that participate in more than 2,300 events worldwide, the website says. The competition season is highly anticipated among STEM enthusiasts and happens each April at local, state, regional and international levels. Griffin said Falkon Academy Robotics creates opportunities for Folsom Cordova Unified School District students to compete at a high level and started 11 new VEX IQ teams this year. "We introduce students to the fundamentals of electronics, programming and mechanical systems to compete in the year-long challenge. Generation Artemis has taken time from competing to share their knowledge and experience with these new students at Folsom Middle School and Marina Village Middle School," Griffin said. "They volunteered at the local tournaments hosted by Falkon Academy for the first time in the Folsom/El Dorado Hills area, acting as referees, robot inspectors and scorekeepers. As classroom mentors, they were instrumental in helping new teams develop the skills to succeed in this innovative competition." The Folsom team is led by seventh-grade students Fallon Griffin, Akash Nekkanti and Ryan Workman, who attend Sutter Middle School, mentor with Falkon Academy at Folsom Middle School, and recently competed in Dallas. "Being able to drive (robotics) in the world championships in Dallas was exciting and a little nerve-wracking," Workman said. "It was fun meeting teams from 70 countries and getting to compete with them on the world stages." His teammates agreed. "The world competition was bigger than I thought. I saw so many amazing robots and met teams that came up with solutions to the game we didn't even think about," Fallon Griffin said. "It is humbling to know that there are so many ideas to solve a simple problem. I was proud that our team's robot could compete with the best of them." The team enjoyed working together. "My favorite part about being on a robotics team is coming up with an idea or strategy and then using teamwork to implement it," Nekkanti said. "I was really excited but also nervous going to Dallas because it was our first time going to worlds and we knew it was going to be fun and challenging." The students said they hope this event will make kids more interested in robotics teams and STEM programs. "Falkon Academy is proud of these students for their ability to apply what they've learned in the classroom and create a competition robot from ideation to completion," Veronica Griffin said. "Their passion for learning and problem solving is evident in their approach and creativity when designing and building their robots. They also model an equally important set of skills learned through the competition; communication, project management, time management and teamwork." For more information on Falkon Academy programs and competitions, visit www.falkonacademy.com and roboticseducation.org.