Five students from Memphis Junior High School will represent their school at the Super-Regional Robotics Championship Tournament in Iowa next month.

These kids will compete against many high school teams, so were excited. They can advance from this to the world competition in St. Louis and there will be teams from China, Japan and Australia there, team mentor Dan Kiehler said.

Members of the FIRST Tech Challenge, or FTC, Robotics Team 8845 The Wild Bees, less formally known as the Wild Bees, initially advanced to the state championship and are one of 15 teams out of over 400 that will represent Michigan at the Super-Regional Championship. The event is a multi-day tournament hosted at the US Cellular Center/DoubleTree Convention Center in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

FIRST, which stands for For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, is a Manchester, New Hampshire-based nonprofit founded in 1989 to inspire young peoples interest and participation in science and technology.

Teams advance to one of the four Super-Regional Championship Tournaments through high achievement at a state or regional championship event, FIRSTs website states. Each Super-Regional Tournament will host 72 teams, for a total of 288 spots at the championships.

The Memphis team will compete in the North Super-Regional Championship. Winning teams will advance to the St. Louis World Championship.

The robotics team is an afterschool program currently in its third year under the direction of parent volunteers Kiehler and Glen Haack.

Weve been somewhat competitive every year and I think were going to do well at the super-regionals. We have a very good team, Kiehler said.

The six-member team picked up honors and trophies at competitions from September to December before earning an invitation to the national event.

Members of the robotics team work together to design, build and operate a robot.

The members must follow rules and regulations for building their robot for competitions. They must keep the unit to 18 by 18, make sure the tires are the correct size and install a set number of motors.

Once the basics are set, teams create activities for the robots such as picking up a ball, turning in place and using a controller to hit a light on the playing field.

The teams are divided up and each member has an assigned task. For example, two members compete as the operator and driver of the robot in front of the meet judges.

The Wild Bees includes team captain and robot driver Marie Melistas, 12, team captain and operator Tommy Wendling, 13, safety captain Tyler Rabine, 12, business manager Chloe Mills, 14, and community relations manager and mascot Clay Jones, 13. Sixth-grader Riley Roy was part of the team throughout the season but will not be making the trip to Iowa. He left the team at the end of the season due to a scheduling conflict.

Each has a role at the competitions. The team must answer questions from the judges and the duo operating the robot on the game floor has just two and a half minutes to show off their skills. As the mascot for the Wild Bees, Joness time is spent wearing the Memphis Bee costume and dancing to entertain the crowd while his team competes.

Having a lot of support at the various competitions throughout the season has been crucial to the Wild Bees success. Kiehler said in addition to Haack, his sons, Nick, Alex and Zack also serve as mentors to the team at every competition.

The Haacks have done so much the last few years. Without that family there wouldnt be a robotics team here, Kiehler said. And weve had phenomenal support from the team parents this year too.

The dedication of the students is also impressive to Kiehler. They are exposed to science, technology and math concepts throughout the process, he said.

Being committed to attending practices twice a week which turn into almost daily meetings when a major competition is on the calendar is a challenge, but one Melistas enjoys.

You have to have patience to be there trying things again and again. But everyone helps with building the robot and, yes, I would recommend the team to other students. she said.

The club can also be costly with robotic parts, tools and entry fees for competitions. Organizers rely on donations, fundraisers and the occasional grant to fund the team.

A returnable bottle drive and a bake sale have raised some funds for the team but the members of the Wild Bees are brainstorming more ways to earn money for their trip. They are hoping a local sponsor steps forward to pay their national competition entry fee, which could be as much as $1,000.

To find out more about the team, call Dan Kiehler at 810-531-4235 or visit facebook.com/team8845.

Barb Pert Templeton is a freelance reporter. She can be contacted at barbperttempleton.reporter@yahoo.com.

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Memphis robotics team headed to Super-Regionals - New Baltimore Voice Newspapers