CWU-Supported Elementary School Robotics Club Sends Two Teams to World Championship

A lot goes into making a robot perform its assigned tasks in an efficient, controllable way. Design, programming, and execution all have to align with the task at hand, and be meticulously planned so the final product works as a cohesive whole.

In spite of the complexity of the task before them, two teams from Mt. Stuart Elementary School in Ellensburg are attending the 2023 Vex Robotics World Championship in Dallas, Texas, this week, following a year of building and testing their robots alongside mentors from Central Washington University's Teach STEM program.

Sydney Smothers and Angela Eustaquio, students in the Teach STEM program, have served as interns for the Mt. Stuart Robotics Club for the last year, overseeing practice and helping run meetings. Eustaquio says the time she has spent with the team has added dimension to her education.

"It's a really invaluable experience because, while we do get opportunities to go into classrooms and observe through our program, I get to be here working with the same group of kids every week until I graduate," she said. "Not only do I get classroom experience; I also get to learn about after-school programs, which will be very valuable to me as a teacher."

The two teams currently competing in Dallas are The Wolf Pack and The Muddy Ducks. The Wolf Pack are last year's championship team, formerly known as Bolt's Bunch, while The Muddy Ducks are all newcomers to the international stage. As a team of third-graders, The Muddy Ducks had some reservations about their chances of success, but they surprised themselves as they accumulated successes throughout the competition season. Team member Kennedy went into the season with muted hopes.

"I expected that we were going to flat-out be last, because we're the youngest, so I didn't want to set my expectations too high," she said. "Now that we've made it, I'm like 'oh my gosh, we did great!'"

Fellow Muddy Ducks member Connley concurs, saying the success took him by surprise.

"I didn't think we were going to do so good, because it's our first year, but it went fine," he said. "We won awards in almost all the tournaments."

Jason Eng, the Mt. Stuart Robotics Team head coach and a CWU elementary education instructor, says getting involved with robotics has been a positive and educational experience for the kids on the team.

"It's really motivating when they can commit to a task and try some kind of solution," he said. "It doesn't always work the first time, so it's just that attitude of trying again and again until you get it right. When they're able to succeed and get these high scores at tournaments, it's a huge morale booster for them, too."

The Mt. Stuart Robotics Team is still accepting donations via GoFundMe to help cover the cost of the trip to Dallas. Any funds raised in excess of the target amount will go toward new equipment and future travel expenses for the club.