On Saturday, January 27, 2023, the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Team CTF 19366 competed at the Lafayette Qualifying Tournament with 26 other teams from across the state. The teams were vying for one of the 24 spots at the State Championship–four teams from each of the six qualifying tournaments around the state advance.
CTF is part of the year-long youth development program Superior STEAM–a 4-H club.
Superior STEAM houses 10 total FIRST Robotics teams for ages 6-18 years old. CTF is the oldest team and uses their knowledge and experience that those students have gained over the years to help teach, inspire, and mentor the other students in the club and in the community.
FIRST, an acronym meaning “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology,”
is an international not-for-profit organization founded by accomplished inventor Dean Kamen in 1989. The organization has a proven impact on STEM learning, interest, and skill-building well beyond high school. It is one of the world’s leading organizations providing experiential
workforce development skills for STEM industries. Participants and alumni of FIRST programs
gain access to education and career discovery opportunities, connections to exclusive
scholarships and employers, and a place in the FIRST community for life.
FTC has two pathways to the state championship: robot game and judged awards. At the end of qualification matches, CTF placed 17th out of 26 teams. The top four teams, at the end of qualification matches, then pick their alliance for the final elimination matches. CTF was the first pick of the second alliance. Unfortunately, the alliance went 0-2 and were eliminated. Fortunately, however, the team’s morning judging session went well and the team was swarmed with other judges throughout the day–even making them late for lunch.
At the end of the day, CTF won the Inspire Award. This award marks the 10th award for the 4-H club this season. The Inspire Award is the most prestigious award in FTC and the same award that sent them to the World Championship in Houston last April. The Inspire Award “...is given to the Team that best embodies the ‘challenge’ of the FIRST Tech Challenge program. The Team that receives this award is a strong ambassador for FIRST programs and a role model FIRST Team. This Team is a top contender for many other judged awards and is a gracious competitor.
The Inspire Award winner is an inspiration to other Teams, acting with Gracious Professionalism® both on and off the Playing Field. This Team shares their experiences,
enthusiasm and knowledge with other Teams, sponsors, their community, and the judges.
Working as a unit, this Team will have shown success in performing the task of designing and
building a Robot.” This is what the judges had to say about the winner of this award: “This team put FIRST into their community while always practicing [Gracious Professionalism]. They have fun while they inspire with their bright creative attire. They don’t freak out with a short circuit, they embrace it and work it.”
CTF now joins seven other teams that have already advanced to the FTC State Championship on March 9th at the University of Indianapolis. Details about the FTC State
Championship can be found here. You can learn more about FTC at firstinspires.org/ftc. You can learn more about FIRST in Indiana at firstindianarobotics.org. You can learn more about Superior STEAM and CTF at superiorsteam.org. And you can watch Saturday’s event and all
FIRST competitions in Indiana at twitch.tv/firstinrobotics.
CTF and Superior STEAM would like to extend a huge thank you to all their sponsors, partners, friends, and family who make all that they do possible. Without them, this award, and
much of the team’s and club’s activities would not be possible. This award belongs to them as
much as, if not more than, the team. Thank you!
CTF would also like to thank their alliance partners for a great run in the elimination matches. Thank you to the alliance captain 17994 Ragnabotics from Poseyville and 21624 Titans from South Bend.