After defeating 52 robotics teams to win the Chairman’s Award at the Midwest Regional in Chicago, a team of students from Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) has headed to St. Louis to compete in the FIRST Robotics World Championship.
The Milwaukee team, known both as Team 1675 and “The Ultimate Protection Squad,” created a robot called Upollo’s Chariot, designed to shoot round plastic discs into other teams’ targets.
Team members include students from MPS schools Lynde and Harry Bradley Technology and Trade School, Rufus King International School, Milwaukee School of Languages, Washington High School of Information Technology, and Wisconsin Lutheran High School
The Chairman’s Award recognizes the winning team as a model for other teams in achieving the goals of FIRST, which promotes education in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) disciplines.
“I am so proud to be part of Team 1675,” said Rufus King International School science teacher Paul Jutrzonka, who is serving as the team’s mentor. “Winning the Chairman’s Award is an affirmation of our team’s diversity and what we’re doing in STEM Education. Watching students, mentors from area businesses, teachers and parents working together as equals is a very rewarding and satisfying experience.”
Team sponsors include area companies such as Aluma-Tec, GE Volunteers, Isthmus Engineering, Milwaukee School of Engineering, PDQ Tooling, Quad Tech, Rockwell Automation, and Stratasys.
For a video on this year’s FIRST robotics competition, click here.
