Tag Archives: Red Storm

East Kentwood hosts annual FIRST robotics competition

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A competition at the FIRST Robotics event at East Kentwood. (WKTV/D.A. Reed)

By D.A. Reed
WKTV Contributor

GRP Titans Nikolai Nigersoll demonstrates how the team’s robot works. (WKTV/D.A. Reed)

Battery issues were the challenge that Grand Rapids Prep Titans FIRST robotics team faced on Saturday, but they did not have to go far to find support.

“We are a team here,” GRP Titans mentor Matt Stewart said of all the 39 participating robotics teams at Kentwood’s FIRST Robotics competition. “All of robotics is a community-oriented thing. We’ve learned so much from all of the other teams.”

Multiple teams reaching out to give GRP Titans tools to help them test their battery, offering their team’s batteries, and offering to let the Titans charge in their pits.

“Everyone is so graceful and helpful,” said Stewart. “In the pits, it’s a community. Once you’re on the field, then you (have to) compete.”

“The Hardest Fun You’ll Ever Have”

The East Kentwood Red Storm Robotics Team (3875) hosted the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) qualifying tournament March 31-April 1, 2023. The competition was sponsored by Dematic, a supplier of materials handling systems, software and services based in Grand Rapids. It gave the teams an opportunity to qualify for the state competition, which is April 6-8 at Saginaw Valley State University.

FIRST Robotics Competition is designed to combine the excitement of sport with the precisions of science and technology. FIRST Robotics’ website calls their competitions “the ultimate Sport for the Mind,” while high school participants have labeled it “the hardest fun you’ll ever have.”

Michigan Robotics teams strive to teach students a multitude of skills, including mechanical engineering, computer-aided design, electrical engineering, programming, systems integration, website building, animation, and fabrication/machining skills.

“You see the kids mature, and one of the big things is all the technical skills,” said event coordinator Wendy Ljungren, adding that the program has opened the college door for many students. “It’s been great to see our kids going into the STEM fields. We’ve had people become doctors, and lawyers, and professionals in engineering and STEM fields, and really see them transition.”

Teaching Life Skills

Sara Robarge, mother of EK teammate Kailey Robarge, said she has seen strong leadership skills taking hold in her daughter over the last year.

Red Storm Robotics teammates Mo Otajagic and Kailey Robarge carry the team’s robot Terence off the field. (WLTV/D.A. Reed)

“I have seen her take on leadership that I hoped I had instilled in her, but I have seen her put it into practice this year,” Robarge said. “As a freshman, she stepped out and tried out for the Drive Team. She also stepped up and said, ‘I’ll lead a robot build.’”

EK robotics mentor Mark VanderVoord said he has seen growth in many students, this year being current team captain Sarah Shapin.

Since Shapin joined the team in sixth grade, “she has learned a lot of technical skills. She’s going to U of M (University of Michigan) next year to do computer programming. Outside of that, she has a high-level view of how it all fits together and how everybody should be working together.

“All of the kids look up to her at this point,” said VanderVoord. “And she was the goofy one when she started!”

VanderVoord emphasized that robotics students are learning far more than how to build a robot.

“It’s about all the life skills,” VanderVoord said. “The teamwork and the technology stuff, but there are kids on our team who are learning marketing and there are kids who are learning all sorts of disciplines. We’re teaching kids to learn (everything).”

Growing the team is a large part of Red Storm Coach Trista VanderVoord’s focus.

“This year we focused a lot on recruitment,” Trista VanerVood said. :We wanted to grow our numbers, but mostly grow our numbers of girls, of females in the program.” 

The Building Blocks

That recruitment doubled the size of the Red Storm team overall, with now over 40% of the team consisting of females—quadrupling its female percentage from last year.

East Kentwood’s Red Storm Robotics team stand next to their robot, Terence. The team competes at the state championship this weekend. (WKTV/D.A. Reed)

“It’s been awesome to see the growth, and it’s been awesome to see the sub-teams that have developed there and really come together and take on their part of the team,” Trista VanderVoord said.

 

EK’s Red Storm finished the tournament 20 out of 39 with a ranking score of 1.66, 5-7-0, 20 ranking points, and earned the Team Sustainability Award. The team already had earned a spot at the state competition by winning the highest award, the Impact Award, at the Lakeshore competition in March.

Other teams at this weekend’s state competition are Hopkns’ Tech Vikes (2054), West Catholic’s Enigma Robotics (2075), Forest Hills’ Comets (3357) and Code Red Robotics the Stray Dogs (2771), which is a community team based out of Byron Center High School.

The state competition action starts at 5 p.m. today. For more, FIRST in Michigan State Championship site.

Wyoming’s Demons

Wyoming’s Demons Robotics team. (WKTV/D.A. Reed)

Abby Strait, high school senior and part of Wyoming High School’s Demons Robotics (858) team, has no trouble taking ownership of her role on the team.

“I’ve always been one of the people who has their hands all over the robot,” Strait said. “By the time we get to the competition, I know the robot inside and out. The more you put into the program, the more you get out of it.”

Demons Robotics finished the tournament 15 out of 39 with a ranking score of 1.83, 7-5-0 (wins-losses-ties), and 22 ranking points.

GRP Titans

Grand River Preparatory High School participated in the EK tournament with its first robotics team in ten years, the GRP Titans (9206), due to grants received from FIRST Robotics.

Stewart said that all students participating have been very invested in the program.

“Some of them had no prior experience, some of them only had building, yet every student has been all hands on deck with everything, and it’s been really cool to see,” Stewart said. “They all know what they do best, what they need to work on, so it’s been really fun to see them all working together.”

Though the Titans currently have approximately 15 team members, Stewart sees that number growing and sustaining since the team is composed mostly of underclassmen.

The GRP Titans finished the tournament 28 out of 39 with a ranking score of 1.50, 4-8-0, and 18 ranking points.

For complete competition results, click here: East Kentwood FIRST Competition.



D. A. (Deborah) Reed is an award-winning author of young adult novels and a creative writing instructor from the Grand Rapids area. To find out more about D.A. Reed, visit her website: D.A. Reed Author

Kentwood’s Red Storm advances to state, hosts local competition this weekend

3-bottom, City of Kentwood, Kentwood Public Schools, , ,

By Troy Best
Red Storm Robotics

On March 28, East Kentwood’s Red Storm Robotics won Impact Award, which secures the team a spot at the state competition. (Courtesy, Red Storm Robotics)

Terence and the Red Storm Robotics Team qualified for the state tournament on Monday, March 28, at the Battle Creek Lakeview #2 tournament after winning the judge’s Impact Award.

The FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Impact Award is the most prestigious award in a FIRST Robotics Competition. The award recognizes a team that reflects sustained excellence and impact within the FIRST community, in its own community and beyond.

 

Terence and the team had another fine performance on the field as well. The team finished 12th in the qualifying rounds and was selected for the #6 Team Alliance before being knocked out in the first two rounds of the finals with their alliance partners. Winning the Impact Award sends the Red Storm Robotics team to the First in Michigan FRC State Competition at Saginaw Valley State University on April 6-8, but before they go to state Red Storm hosts its own qualifying tournament this weekend in Kentwood.

Robots from all over the state will be rolling into Kentwood’s home tournament on March 31 and April 1 to take on 37 other FIRST Teams’ robots for a chance to advance to the state tournament. In this Charged UpSM competition, the Red Storm Robotics team reimagines the future of sustainable energy and powers its ideas forward to victory.

The Kentwood Tournament is a free event for everyone starting at 10:30 a.m. Friday, March 31. The public is encouraged to attend. WKTV Community television crews will be at East Kentwood both days providing television coverage of the FIRST Robotics competition. WKTV’s coverage will be available for broadcast on WKTV and streamed via WKTV’s on demand service in the month of April.

Please come cheer our Red Storm Robotics team as they demonstrate “gracious professionalism” through their application of mechanical engineering, computer-aided design, electrical engineering, programming, systems integration, website building, animation, and fabrication/machining skills.

Red Storm Robotics’ Terence utilizes autonomous and driver-assisted modes, optical sensors to help guide it to targets, an elevator arm with a mechanical cone-grabbing claw, and gyroscope-assisted balancing to help it perform in this year’s 2022-2023 competition. The KPS FRC Team #3875 is made up of approximately 40 high school students, four coaches, and four mentors from the Kentwood Public Schools and nearby communities.

The Red Storm Robotics with Terence robot. (Courtesy, Red Storm Robotics)
The Red Storm Robotics team cheers on its teammates. (Courtesy, Red Storm Robotics)

‘Terence,’ the Red Storm Robot gets rolling March 31

3-bottom, Citizen Journalism, City of Kentwood, Kids Activities, Upcoming Events, , ,
Red Storm Robotics includes 40 East Kentwood High School students, four coaches and four mentors. (Courtesy, Red Storm Robotics)

By Trot Best
Red Storm Robotics

Terence, the Red Storm Robotics FRC Robot, is rolling into Kentwood’s home tournament on March 31 and April 1 to take on 37 other FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Teams’ robots for a chance to advance to the state tournament. In this Charged UpSM competition, the Red Storm Robotics team reimagines the future of sustainable energy and powers its ideas forward to victory.

Hosts: KPS Red Storm Robotics, FRC Team #3875

Where: East Kentwood High School, 

When: March 31 and April 1, 2023 

Teams & More: https://firstinmichigan.us/FRC/miken/

Terence, the Red Storm Robotics’ robot. (Courtesy, Red Storm Robotics)

This is a free event for everyone starting at 10:30 am on Friday, March 31. WKTV Community television crews will be at East Kentwood both days providing television coverage of the FIRST Robotics competition. WKTV’s coverage will be available for broadcast on WKTV and streamed via WKTV’s on demand service in the month of April.

The public is encouraged to attend and cheer our Red Storm Robotics team, or their favorite local team, as they demonstrate “gracious professionalism” through their application of mechanical engineering, computer-aided design, electrical engineering, programming, systems integration, website building, animation, and fabrication/machining skills. Red Storm Robotics’ Terence utilizes autonomous and driver-assisted modes, optical sensors to help guide it to targets, an elevator arm with a mechanical cone-grabbing claw, and gyroscope-assisted balancing to help it perform in this year’s 2022-2023 competition. The KPS FRC Team #3875 is made up of approximately 40 high school students, four coaches, and four mentors from the Kentwood Public Schools and nearby communities.

Project-based, hands-on FIRST® programs introduce students to engineering and coding in an engaging, inclusive, and creative after-school environment where students work collaboratively to solve an annual robotics challenge centered around a yearly theme. Boosted by a million-strong global community of students, mentors, educators, volunteers, sponsors, and alumni in over 100 countries.

Two girls remove a robot from the field during the Grand Rapids Girls Robotics competition

For local robotics event, its about showing girls they ‘can do it’

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Wyoming’s Demon Robotics and East Kentwood’s Storm Red battle during the Grand Rapids Girls Robotics Competition on Oct. 8. (WKTV/Jodi Miesen)

By Jodi Miesen
WKTV Contributor

It was an intense battle for bragging rights for two local all-girls high school robotics teams that took part in a competition that focused on their abilities in a very male-dominated field.

The 2022 Grand Rapids Girls Robotics Competition was held at Wyoming High School over the weekend. Most high school robotics teams are co-ed but for this unique annual STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) event, only the girls were allowed to compete. GRGRC event coordinator Mallorie Edwards said the event was founded in 2016, by Wyoming High School teacher Richard Budden. Budden taught STEM and noticed female students were not as interested in it.

Edwards, who has been with the organization since 2017, said she’s passionate about the organization’s mission and was excited GRGRC could bring the competition back this year. This is the first time they’ve been able to hold the all-day event since the COVID-19 pandemic started. Turnout was lower this year than in the past with only 14 teams. The event is capped at 24 teams.

“I am hoping to grow the numbers that participate in the competition next year,” Edwards said. “A challenge I heard from many coaches that I reached out to was that they didn’t have enough girls on the team to compete. That is the exact reason why we are doing this event. To show girls that they can do these roles, be successful, and have fun.”

The key to success: the willingness to learn

The event drew robotics teams from high schools all over the state with two local teams, Red Storm (Team 3875) from East Kentwood High School and Demon Robotics (Team 858) from Wyoming High School.

Abby Strait stands next to her team's robot at the Grand Rapids Girls Robotics competition
Team Captain Abby Strait from Wyoming High School’s The Demons, stands next to the team’s robot. (WKTV/Jodi Miesen)

Through out the competition, teams form alliances with other teams to battled in complex two-minute games against other alliances. This all done with robots that the students have built and program. Wyoming’s The Demons and East Kentwood’s Red Storm ended up being on the same alliance and were fierce competitors, losing by just two points.

“You can do it! You don’t have to be super smart to be in robotics, you just have to be willing to learn,” said Abby Strait, a Wyoming High School senior and team captain. “Your team will teach you all that you need to know.”

Strait, who has been on robotics teams since 8th grade, was excited that her school was hosting an event that promotes girls to pursue science and math fields. She said she felt that far too often girls shy away from robotics thinking it will be too hard, but she hopes events like this will draw more female interest. 

“I’m hoping to go to college for some sort of engineering, something really hands on, as opposed to just math behind the desk,” Strait said as she reflected on what career she might want to pursue in the future. “But this has definitely made me more interested in the STEM career field.”

Taking STEM by storm

Red Storm team captain Sarah Shapin, a senior at East Kentwood High School, is in her seventh year participating in the robotics program. Shapin said she started in middle school and plans to continue her interest in the STEM field in the future.

Sarah Chapin shows off the shirt she designed for the Grand Rapids Girls Robotics competition
Team Captain Sarah Chapin from East Kentwood’s Red Storm stands by her team’s robot and displays the logo she designed for this year’s event. Casa Calvo Marketing designed the t-shirt. (WKTV/Jodi Miesen)

Shapin she too believes that women are under-represented in this area but said events like this can help bridge that gap.

“A lot of times women are on it,” Shapin said as she relayed an analogy told to her by her mentor. “And then a guy kind of takes a screwdriver out of her hands and doesn’t give it back. So, it’s not necessarily that women are blocked from it. However, it’s very male-dominated and so therefore, giving this opportunity like this competition allows for women to really get in there, get involved and push through.”

Shapin said she hopes to attend Michigan State University, double majoring in computer science and music. Her goal is to be a software engineer and continue playing the clarinet.

Breaking the stereotypes

According to Edwards, all that hard work pays off on competition day after seeing the students’ reactions and from the correspondence she receives after the event is over.

“The Grand Rapids Girls Robotics Competition is important to me, because of the letters I receive after the competition; expressing how happy they were to be able to participate in a role that usually a male teammate would be in,“ Edwards said. “And also, during the competition, I get to see the excitement exude from these kids. They love what they’re doing! They love STEM!”

The competition also featured a panel of guest speakers, “Ladies in Tech,” made up of women successful in the STEM fields. 

To learn more about the Grand Rapids Girls Robotics Competition go to it’s official website, www.girlsrobotics.org or by e-mail GrandRapidsGirlsRobotics@gmail.com.  They can also be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GRGRComp/.

Girls move robot off field during Grand Rapids Girls Robotics competition
Wyoming Team Captain Abby Strait gets help moving the Demons’ robot off the field. (WKTV/Jodi Miesen)
Students gather together during the Grand Rapids Girls Robotics competition
The alliance of the Wyoming, East Kentwood, and Marysville teams gathers before the final competition. (WKTV/Jodi Miesen)

Grandville team nabs top honors at FIRST Robotics event, Potter’s House named top rookie team

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It was a packed house as East Kentwood High School hosted its fourth annual FIRST Robotics event just before Easter.

 

More than 800 students from around West Michigan and as far away as Troy and Milan, competed at the two-day event in hopes of landing a spot in the state competition set for April 12-14 at Saginaw Valley State University.

 

Teams for the Kentwood and Wyoming area included home team East Kentwood’s Red Storm, Wyoming High School’s Demons, Lee High School’s Rebel Robotics, Potter House’s Tactical Hams, and the West Michigan Aviation Academy’s Team Spitfire. There also were teams from Grandville and Grand Rapids such as Ottawa Hills High School.

 

After 80 some qualifying rounds, the final eight teams were announced Saturday afternoon with team alliance selections made for the semi-finals. Several of the local teams including East Kentwood’s Red Storm, Wyoming’s Demons, Lee’s Rebel Robotics, and Potter House’s Tactical Hams made the semi-finals.

 

Top Dawgs: Code Red Robotics the Stray Dogs took home the prestigious Chairman’s Award.

But it would be the alliance of Kalamazoo’s Strike Force, Newaygo’s NC Gears, and Hackett Catholic Prep’s Irish Robotics that would bring home the win.

 

Several local teams did receive awards with Grandville’s Code Red Robotics the Stray Dogs taking home the Chairman’s Award. This is the most prestigious award at FIRST as it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST. Teams who have earned the Regional and District Championship Chairman’s Award can travel to the FIRST Championship to be considered for the Chairman’s Award.

 

Code Red Robotics the Stray Dogs along with Wayland’s Widlcats and Lee’s Rebel Robotics were a district event finalist. The Wayland Wildcats also earned the Industrial Design Award sponsored by General Motors.

 

Receiving the Highest Rookie Seed was Potter’s House’s Tactical Hams and the Gracious Professionalism Award sponsored by Johnson & Johnson went to Grandville’s The RoboDawgs.

 

For a complete list of awards, click here.

 

WKTV broadcast the event live on Saturday, March 31. Visit wkvt.viebet.com to see the broadcast or check the WKTV TV schedule at wktv.org or wktvjournal.org.