The ArchiTECHS had fun the FIRST Lego League state competition at Iowa State University. Pictured, from left: Braden Stewart, Meredith Codis, Elazia Davison, Roan Jelken, parent-coach Shannon Jelken, and Jay Helton.
Bitter cold and snowy weather didn’t slow down the Miller Middle School ArchiTECHS Lego League team as they competed at the State FIRST Lego League tournament at Iowa State University last week.
The team presented on their plan to improve a public space in their community. Specifically, their project focused on improving Miller Middle School’s food pantry.
The ArchiTECHS also competed in three robot runs, in which a robot they designed and programmed completed missions with modules created from Legos. The team’s robot was also featured in a robot judging session in which the team described the machine’s construction and programming features to judges.
The final event of the day was Core Values judging, during which the students demonstrated to judges how they used innovation, teamwork and inclusion throughout the season. The ArchiTECHS were successful at the tournament and earned first place in Core Values.
Additionally, the contributions of team member Elazia Davison were recognized with the Grace Murray Hopper Award, which is given to a female FIRST LEGO League team member who shows persistence in finding solutions, the courage to be innovative, and is a gracious professional. The award is named for American computer scientist Grace Murray Hopper, and United States Navy rear admiral.
Miller Middle School teacher and ArchiTECHS coach Ann Jackson said the team will continue to work hard on projects after the competition.
“Even though our official season is now finished, the group will continue their work with the food pantry and robotics,” Jackson said.
