Team 230 is currently in its twenty-sixth year of involvement in the FIRST Robotics Competition. Team 230, “The Gaelhawks”, is both an award-winning team and an active “STEM” force within the community. Students on the team are mentored by professionals in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and programming.
Each year, when FIRST releases the game, the team immediately gets to work. We split into groups to develop our own strategies, then the team reconvenes and decides on the overall game plan. The team then works on designing prototypes for fulfilling the game. As team members experiment with help from mentors, the robot’s design slowly comes together. Once the robot is done, the team selects several potential drive team members, and allows them to practice.
However, building a robot is not the only task that this team accomplishes in six weeks. Several awards regarding community involvement and team plans, as well as essays about nominated team members and mentors are written and submitted during this time period.
In addition, Team 230 mentors three First Lego League teams. These teams are composed of students from fifth to eighth grade who are actively mentored by our students during their competition season.
When the team is not building robots, we keep ourselves busy by getting involved in the community. Team members participate in a variety of fundraisers every year. Other community events we are involved in include Relay for Life, Trick or Trunk, Flag Day, and Shelton Day.