Churchville-Chili's high school robotics team, AKA, GRR, led by Technology teacher Jason Rees, was awarded the Chairman's Award at the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recogition of Science and Technology) Regional Robotics the weekend of March 4. This award honors the team that sets the benchmark for others and embodies the goals, purpose and spirit of FIRST. It remains the most prestigious team award presented. Congratulations also to student Mike Roushey and the Animation Team for winning the Autodesk Visualization Award. This award is selected by student peers for excellence in student animation. Nearly three dozen teams, about 1,000 high school students in all, filled the Rochester Institute of Technology's Gordon Field House. The students' creations zipped back and forth in a rink, picking up television-sized tetrahedrons and stacking them while jousting with one another. Teams came from across the Rochester region and as far away as Delaware, Michigan and Ontario, Canada. GRR developed an outstanding robot and played hard against teams from throughout the northeast, but was eliminated in the semi-final round of the playoffs. But they gained the opportunity to battle again as they met the criteria to compete at the Championship Competition, held at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia from April 21 to 23. |
