Mascoma Valley School District
Amanda Isabelle, Superintendent
Rt. 4
PO Box 789
Enfield, NH 03748
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, May 24, 2019
Media Contact: John Guilfoil
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: john@jgpr.net
Mascoma Valley Students Excel through Regional Upper Valley Robotics Team
ENFIELD, N.H. — Superintendent Amanda Isabelle is pleased to share that the Upper Valley Robotics Team ranked 16th in New England after a series of robotics competitions this school year.
The Upper Valley Robotics Team, also known as FIRST Robotics Competition Team 95, is a regional group of students from schools including Hartford Area Career and Technology Center (HACTC), Hartford, Hanover, Lebanon and Mascoma Valley, as well as homeschooled students.
After this year’s FIRST Robotics competition cycle, the team placed 16th out of the 210 registered teams in New England. The team also qualified for the World Championship competition in Detroit, Michigan this April, but did not attend.
The FIRST Robotics Competition annually challenges students to raise funds and build a robot in six weeks that they will enter into regional competitions. The team named their 2019 robot Cecelia Payne, and were supported during the process by the HACTC, Progressive Manufacturing Inc., and local companies including FujiFilm Dimatix, Hypertherm, and Timken.
James Cole-Henry, an engineer at Fujifilm, is the head coach for the team. There are approximately 14 students and eight coaches on the team.
The Upper Valley Robotics Team is one of a select few in the world capable of completing all 12 cycles needed to finish a rocket by themselves, and has successfully done so in competition.
“These students worked remarkably hard to build their robot, and I think their success this season illustrates their superb knowledge of robotics,” Superintendent Isabelle said. “This program provides a wonderful opportunity for students to learn directly from local professionals, and being a regional team, students also had the opportunity to work alongside their peers from other schools.”
The team took part in four regional competitions this school year. They placed as quarter finalists in the April 10-13 New England District Championship at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts; finalists at the 2019 New England District Central Massachusetts Competition from March 29-31 at Shrewsbury High School in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts; event winners at the New England District North Shore Event on March 15-17 at Reading Memorial High School in Reading, Massachusetts; and semifinalists at the 2019 New England District Granite State Event in Salem, New Hampshire from March 15-17.
The team also won an Engineering Excellence award at the North Shore event and an Industrial design award at the Central Massachusetts event.
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