Two Hamilton County schools are advancing to the World Robotics Finals next month.
STEM School, which won the Engineering Inspiration Award at the Rocket City Regional FIRST Robotics Competition in Huntsville, Ala., earlier this month, will advance to the FIRST Robotoics Competition World Championships April 18-21 in Houston, according to a news release.
Meanwhile, Chattanooga School for Liberal Art's REC VEX robotics team advances to the world finals competition in Louisville, Ky.
"I'm excited to see this many teams represent our area at the world championships," said Rachel Crickmar, program manager for the Tennessee Valley Authority's community relations department, in a statement. "The Valley is known for transportation, manufacturing and space exploration, and I hope we can add robotics world champions to that list."
TVA is one of the biggest sponsors of robotics competitions in the region - the organization sponsored about 80 competitions during the 2017-18 robotics season and partnered with more than 500 elementary, middle and high schools.
Robotics teams typically design their robots themselves, and then pit them against other teams in a series of missions. As students age and move grade levels, the design process and tasks to perform become more complex.
"To say we were stunned to win this award is an understatement," said Kenneth Kranz, of STEM School's robotics team, of the award the team received in Huntsville, in a statement. "I love that this award is about what our team does all year long to showcase robotics and inspire kids in our community to pursue STEM careers." He added, "I'm so proud that they could be recognized for their hard work."
Teams from 23 schools across the state will move on to one of the three final competitions next month.