Delta High Robotics Team Competes at World Championships | School Zone

Delta High School Robotics performed well and had a once-in-a-lifetime experience at their first Vex Robotics World Championships in Texas.

Two Vex robotics teams from Delta “Dragon” Robotics battled it out and placed 89th and 120th in skills and 52nd and 75th in their match divisions among more than 800 championship teams.

Vex is the largest robotics competition with more than 13,679 VRC high school teams worldwide. Teams represented 55 countries as well as the U.S., Mexico and Canada. The program is sponsored by top technology companies including Northrop Grumman, NASA, Tesla, Microsoft, and Hyundai/Boston Dynamics.
 
“It’s like going to the Olympics for the Tech World,” said Delta Coach Jeff Cooper. “I was just grateful we qualified to be in the top 4.5%, but seeing my teams competing and even beating teams that are the champions in their countries in order to get to the top 1%, was absolutely phenomenal.

“These Delta students have proven what is possible for everyone — our students can compete in STEM at the highest levels. The founders of VEX reminded every team at the championship that they made it to the Worlds because they persevered through many failures,” he said.

Following are some comments from the student team members:
 
“I didn’t think I would ever experience something like this in my life,” said Adrian Lopez, engineer/builder who is in 11th grade. “It was amazing to see and meet so many different people from all over the world, to have their respect.

“I am also a little sad because as an 11th grader I will be the only one from our team who can compete next year. In larger school programs, those students would have up to four years. Here at Delta, most of us get just one year to learn engineering and programming. This makes our accomplishments even more incredible,” Lopez said.

“Never would I have thought I would travel the world and meet many people from so many different backgrounds. Never did I think I would be part of something bigger than me. Having been able to get this experience of a lifetime with people who are now like family is something most people only wish to experience, it was my reality,” said 12th-grader Adan Roldan, lead engineer/programmer/builder.

“My time at the VEX robotics World Championships was amazing, especially since it was my first and last year in robotics. I got to push myself past limits and grow from it,” said Zia Perez, mechanic/builder, who is in 12th grade.

“Getting to go to the VEX World Championships at all was a major reward and win for me. In such a small amount of time-one school year-our teams were able to do something that no one in our school or district has ever done before,” said 12th grader Kayla Ramirez, engineer/mechanic.

“Getting to see and meet all the diverse teams, people, and cultures made it a really neat experience. It gave me insight into a direction into our world I have yet to discover,” she said.

“I have written over 200 programs for our robot in Python, going to Worlds made it more than worth it. Also, driving in the matches against top teams from all over the World was amazing,” said Jordan Guerrero, programmer/driver, who is in 12th grade.
 
Delta Principal Nate Maas said: “I couldn’t be more proud of our students for their accomplishments at the Vex World Championship.

“Getting a bid to go to Worlds proved they’re in the top tier of robotics students worldwide, but the fact that they were competitive in this top tier demonstrates that they’re among the best of the best.

Cooper spotlighted the support of local groups for the high school robotics program:

“In Santa Maria, organizations such as Elks, our school boards, our local feeder schools in Santa Maria Bonita and our local business partners such as Chumash Casino are supportive of expanding robotics in our district.”