Vestavia Hills elementary robotics teams sweep UA competition

Vestavia Hills elementary schools swept the University of Alabama’s robotics competition on April 7, taking home first through fourth prize.

Teams from Vestavia Hills Elementary Central took home first place and fourth place prizes, and the teams from Vestavia Hills Elementary Central took home second and third.

Students practiced weekly to learn how to program Lego Mindstorm EV3 robots and competed in a friendly competition with Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights as well as the Hoover Robotics Competition.

The culminating contest of the season in Tuscaloosa featured several obstacle coursesthat must be navigated over a three-hour period by an autonomous robot that is programmed by each team.  

There were three obstacles that each team had to work on that were themed around the movie “The Incredibles.” Elementary students worked right alongside middle school and high school students on the same challenges. Scores were tallied up from these three obstacles and awards were given. 

From VHEC: First place prizes were awarded to Caleb Boylan, Sriram Birur, Tate Sparks, Ivan Riley, and Maddie Crawford. 4th place prizes were awarded to James Junkin, Jake McNiel, Wrenn Smith and Nifemi Makwimi.

VHECH’s two teams were made up of fifth grade students: Jesse Hicks, Beck Alexander, Tad Boryczka, Addie Lott, Natalie Guo, Ann Harper Adams, Lily Lott, Kenison Heard, Will Burrus, and Charlie Hamrick. 

Along with a team trophy, each student received a $35 gift card as well as a subscription to an e-book of their choice in the field of computer science. 

– Submitted by Vestavia Hills City Schools.