Robot Report Card - March 2017 Issue

Robot Report Card March 2017 Issue 2016-17 Robots in Review Wow - what a great first year! We've learned so much while managing the State Robotics Initiative - we've also had a lot of fun along the way! The feedback that we have received from teachers and students has been very encouraging and we are looking forward to continuing our efforts in 2017. We would like to thank all of you who were involved in making this year a great success!  The 2017-18 Robotics Grant Application will be opening at the end of this month for 400 new elementary schools and will further expand robotics opportunities for students and teachers around the state. Please spread the word about the grant to any elementary teacher who you think may be interested! To learn more about the successes of the 2016-17 State Robotics Initiative, read on! -The Robot Team Indiana State Robotics Initiative Sponsors  Words cannot express how grateful we are for our sponsors and their generous contributions toward turning our vision and mission into a reality. It has truly been a team effort. An extra special thanks to everyone listed below! IN VEX IQ Robotics Team Growth In March of 2016, Indiana had 72 Elementary VEX IQ teams. We are proud to say that a year later, our state can boast an impressive 518 teams! That's an estimated 5,000+ Indiana students involved with a robotics team across the state.  Robot Map The maps below reflect Indiana's VEX IQ Robotics growth in elementary schools from 2015-16 to 2016-17. Robotics Competition Season In support of all of the new teams across the state, many event partners stepped up to offer competitions at their schools and organizations. The 2016-17 robotics season consisted of 44 local competitions (including the IndyVRC) and the first ever large scale VEX IQ State event for elementary schools. In April, Indiana's top elementary teams will have the amazing opportunity to compete at the VEX Robotics World Championship event in Louisville, Kentucky!  State Championship On February 25th, more than 95 robotics teams from 38 cities around Indiana competed in the Indiana VEX IQ Elementary State Championship hosted by the State Robotics Initiative. The competition took place at the Campus Center at IUPUI with over 1,500 spectators in attendance. Photos taken at IndyVRC & VEX IQ Elementary State Championship courtesy of Ellie Sophia Photography. To see Ellie's full Photo Galleries of each of these events, visit www.elliesophia.com/Client-Galleries/Tech-Point-Foundation VEX Robotics Worlds Championship The VEX Robotics Worlds Championship will take place in Louisville, Kentucky, on April 19-25, 2017. 26 Indiana Elementary teams were invited to compete from Indiana including the following 16 award winners from the State Championship! TechPoint Foundation for Youth is proud to say we were able to offer financial assistance to 5 qualifying schools in order to help them get to this awesome event.  More information about the World Championship can be found here.  Teacher of the Year Leading up to the State Championship last month, TechPoint Foundation for Youth gave Indiana principals the opportunity to nominate the robotics teacher at their school who had exhibited true leadership and dedication to his or her group of robotics students throughout the past year.  A selection committee then carefully reviewed each submission and ultimately narrowed them down to who they considered the most qualified candidate.  This year's Teacher of the Year award went to Beth Faust, the 5th Grade teacher and Robotics Educator from Rockville Elementary in Rockville, IN. Congratulations, Beth!  Pictured from L to R: Executive Director of TPF4Y, Laura Dodds and Teacher of the Year, Beth Faust We want to congratulate ALL of our 2016-17 Robotics Educators - without you, none of this could have happened! What was accomplished by teachers all around the state was truly inspiring! We hope to continue to work with all of the amazing 2016-17 Robotics Educators in the coming year! Thank you! 2017-18 SRI Grant Kick-Off! There will be 400 more Robot Grants available to qualifying elementary schools as well as qualifying youth focused non-profit organizations. The application becomes available on our website March 31! Once again, recipients of the grant will receive: 1)      VEX IQ Robotics Kit - $300 2)      VEX IQ Extras - $100 3)      VEX IQ Team registration - $100 4)      PLTW classroom activities 5)      Professional Development Training on all items listed above Visit our website www.techpointyouth.org/robotgrant/ for updates and to learn more! Going Forward Help spread the word! If you are reading this, we would appreciate your help in getting the word out about the State Robotics Initiative!  Tweet about us:  “Want a #robotics team at your school? @TPF4YRobots is granting FREE #VEXIQ robots & training to IN elem. teachers! bit.ly/robotapply”  Facebook about us:“Want a #robotics team at your school? @TPF4YRobots is granting FREE #VEXIQ robots & training to IN elem. teachers! bit.ly/robotapply”