Westfield High School To Host Robotics Competition, Nov. 29

By Lorre Korecky

On Saturday, November 29, Westfield High School will host the Westfield Wrangle, a FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Robotics Competition.

FTC is designed for students in grades 7-12 to compete head to head, using a sports model. Teams design, build, and program their robots to compete in an alliance format against other teams using sound engineering principles. The robot is programmed using a variety of languages.

Awards are given for the competition as well as for community outreach, design, and other real-world accomplishments.

The Westfield Robotics Team has two robots competing in this year’s tournament season. Advisors for the team are Westfield High School Science teachers Valentino Scipioni and Susan Marie Terra. The local November meet is the first time Westfield High School will host this event.

A total of 24 teams will compete in matches which will begin at 10:00 AM and continue until approximately 3:00 PM. The public is welcome to attend. There is no charge for admission.

Team Captain and WHS Sophomore Spencer Fishman explained, “We started building our robots in September through the engineering and design process. We tested them out, and made revisions and are assembling them now so we will be ready for the November competition.” Spencer noted that the teams meet every week from Monday through Thursday after school.

Team member Trisha Mukhopadhyay, a freshman at Westfield High School, said, “I want to contribute to the team as much as I could. I learn how to build things as well as how to program.”

The contest is one of several opportunities for the teams to compete for a spot in the April 2015 World Championship to be held in St. Louis, MO.

For more information about the program visit the FTC FIRST Tech Challenge Website: http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/ftc or contact Valentino Scipioni,vscipioni@westfieldnjk12.org for details regarding the Westfield High School November event.

PHOTO CAPTION

Members of Westfield High School’s Robotics team, who will host the FTC FIRST Tech Challenge on Saturday, November 29, include: Front Row (Left to Right): Mike Carides (vice-captain), Neil Makhija (captain), Spencer Fishman (captain), and Alistair Kapadia (vice-captain); Middle Row (Left to Right): Saranya Turimella, Christine Rogers, Fiona Gillespie, Trisha Mukhopadhyay, Rachael He, Anna Glueck, Linzy Rosen, and Ashley Rosen; Back Row (Left to Right): Joe Detrano, Jack Mulvanerty, Jordan Hindes, Eli Zidel, Thomas Han, Hank Sacco, and Vivek Sreenivasan