By Kathy Chouteau
Richmond High School’s Robotics team earned three awards at this past weekend’s Western Region Robotics Forum’s “CalGames 2023” competition at Woodside High School on the Peninsula.
During the competition, 42 schools participated in the event over a three-day period. Richmond High School had 21 total students participating out of its roster of 50 students, according to Luciano Del Rio, manager of the IT Maker Space and program director of the Team 841 RHS Robotics Program.
Del Rio said the team did an amazing job at representing the school, district and community. “The amazing efforts showcased how talented they are with their writing, presentation and technical skills.”
Richmond High’s Robotics team earned the Outstanding Mentor Award; Innovation Award—a technical award; and also was second place as CalGames 2023 Finalists.
Del Rio said the Outstanding Mentor Award involved the students’ written submission nominating their mentor, coming out on top against 41 other submissions. The Innovation Award recognized a specific example of an innovative approach to use of technology (on the robot or in another project). The team had to describe the need, how their approach addressed that need and give a presentation, he said. Del Rio said the students then reached the competition’s finals and walked away with 2nd place.
Next up? The local Robotics team will head to Aragon High School in San Mateo Oct. 21 for the EmpowerHer Showdown; then they’re off to Pleasant Grove High School in Pleasant Grove Oct. 27-29 for the Capital City Classic; and finally they’ll show up at Matilde Torres High School in Madera Nov. 10-12 for the MadTown Throwdown.
The competitions are part of the innovative FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Commpetition, a massive nonprofit launched in 1989 to inspire New Hampshire teens in the fields of engineering and technology. According to this recent report in NPR on the organization, FIRST “has grown to encompass more than 83,000 high schoolers in 31 countries.”
Click here for a livestream of the CalGames competition.
