Local FIRST Teams Compete at Worlds Championship

Local FIRST Teams Compete at Worlds Championship

Twelve local FIRST teams represented our region well at the FIRST Worlds Championship in St. Louis, April 23 – 25, 2015.  Eight local FIRST Robotics Competition Teams competed in the Edward R. Jones Dome with several award winners and high tournament placements in the group.  One FIRST Lego League team made the journey to present their World Class project in the Global Innovation Faire.  Three Junior FIRST Lego League teams exhibited their projects at the St. Louis Union Station.

Starting with the youngest:

Jr. FLL (FIRST LEGO League):

#1050 The Imagineers (Academie Lafayette) won Amazing Movement Award

#491 Techno Turtles (St. Peter’s Catholic School) won Inquiring Minds Award

#420 Rinky Dink Thinkers (Overland Park Neighborhood Group) won Gracious Professionalism Award

FLL (FIRST LEGO League):

Brick Ops (Overland Park Neighborhood Team) competed for the Global Innovation Award: Their innovation improves the way people with dyslexia learn to read.

FRC (FIRST ROBOTICS COMPETITION):

Award Winners:

1710: Olathe Northwest High School, Ravonics Revolution, won the Industrial Safety Award sponsored by Underwriters Laboratories
(Division Level Award)

1730: Lee’s Summit High School, Team Driven, won the Entrepreneurship Award sponsored by Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers
(Division Level Award)

1806: Smithville High School, S.W.A.T., won the Excellence in Engineering Award sponsored by Delphi
(Division Level Award)

The following teams made it into the sub division quarter finals and beyond:

1723: Independence School District, FIRST Bots of Independence (FBI) from  William Chrisman High, Truman High, and Van Horn High.

1730: Lee’s Summit High School, Team Driven

1806: Smithville High School, S.W.A.T.

1986: Lee’s Summit West High School, Team Titanium

4522: Smith-Cotton High School in Sedialia, Team SCREAM

In addition, Team 1777 from Shawnee Mission South High School and Team 1785 from Blue Springs School District (Blue Springs High School and Blue Springs South High School) earned a spot and competed in the Worlds Championship.

Local FIRST Robotics Competition Teams are some of the most successful in the world.  Three of our local teams are ranked in the top 1% worldwide based on regional and championship competition results and awards (the rating is called OPR and stands for Offensive Power Ranking.)  These three teams are: Lee’s Summit High School (Team Driven), Lee’s Summit West High School (Team Titanium), and Smithville High School (S.W.A.T.).