The Shelton High School Robotics Team, the Gaelhawks, placed first at last weekend’s Worcester Polytechnic Institute Regional Robotics Competition.
Led by captains Emily Spoldi and Ryan Rousell, the team beat 28 other schools from across New England to take the number 1 seed and the eventual tournament championship.
Advisors John Niski and Kerry Taylor accompanied the group to the three-day competition.
Students participating in the competition included Ryan Rousell, Emily Spoldi, Aaron Eggensteiner, Will Latino, Nick Mandrona, Ed Mccann, LeeAnn Miscencik, Jonathan Niedzwiecki, Jeffery Quickel, Michael Rak, Peter Spoldi and Brian Welch.
The Gaelhawks were awarded the Rockwell Automation “Quality in Controls” award for robot design and construction.
Shelton’s team is sponsored by UTC Sikorsky, Pitney Bowes, Intuitive Surgical, OEM Controls and the Shelton Board of Education.
The team will compete next on April 1,2,& 3rd at the Connecticut Regional Competition in Hartford and at the National Championship Event in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.
An integral part of the STEM educational initiative in Shelton, the robotics team works to promote science and technology through student led involvement in the engineering project.
As a part of the national FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) organization, founded by inventor Dean Kamen, the Shelton students work hand in hand with teachers, parents and engineers to design, build and compete with a new robot design each year.
Shelton is in its 12th year of participation in FIRST Robotics and is considered to be one of the premier programs in the nation.
The team is looking for sponsors to assist in funding their trip to the national competition.
For more information regarding this program or to become a sponsor please contact: John Niski, Robotics Advisor at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)