Regional Winners Named In Student-Built Robot Competition

MEDIA RELATIONS OFFICE
JET PROPULSION LABORATORY
CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
PASADENA, CALIF. 91109 TELEPHONE (818) 354-5011
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov

Natalie Godwin (818) 354-0850
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

News Release: 2005-057                    April 6, 2005

Regional Winners Named In Student-Built Robot Competition

Students from Southern California, Arizona, New Hampshire, Florida,
Massachusetts and Canada had the opportunity to rub metal and burn
rubber against some of the world's finest student-built robots
during a regional competition held April 1-2 at the Great Western
Forum in Inglewood, Calif.

The robots took part in the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition
of Science and Technology) Southern California Regional
Competition, where 52 robots and nearly 2,000 high school students
engaged in all the thrills of competition. This was one of 30
regional competitions held around the country. FIRST is a non-
profit organization whose mission is to generate an interest in
science and technology.

The championship team alliance, made up of three teams, will work
together in the national competition.  The team includes Hope
Chapel Academy, Hermosa Beach, Calif.; Van Nuys High School, Van
Nuys, Calif.; and Quincy Public School, Quincy, Mass.

More than 500 teams from around the world will next compete in the
national robotics competition at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, April
21-23.

"This program pulls up the blinds and exposes kids to other careers
they may not have considered before. The students learn to work as
a team toward a common goal," said Rob Steele, robotics engineer at
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., and a mentor
for nine years to the Hope Chapel Academy team. "In some respects,
it's like working on a mission, where each person works on one part
or component toward one common goal, mission success."

JPL/NASA-sponsored teams also earned several awards at the regional
competition:

Regional finalists included:

    - High Tech High in Los Angeles & Chatsworth High, Chatsworth
        West Covina High School, West Covina
    - Delphi Academy, Shuttleworth Academy, Renaissance Academy,
    - Los Angeles Academy of Literacy & the Arts, Los Angeles



Judges Award:

          - High Tech High School, Los Angeles
          - Chatsworth High School, Chatsworth

Industrial Design Award:

          - Hope Chapel Academy, Hermosa Beach

Rookie All-Star:

          - Beverly Hills High School, Beverly Hills

JPL is managed for NASA by the California Institute of Technology
in Pasadena.

Find more information about the competition at
http://www.usfirst.org/  .

View an animation of this year's game at
http://robotics.nasa.gov/first/2005/kickoff.htm  .

Find more information on NASA's Robotics Education Project at
http://robotics.nasa.gov/  .

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