(Picture Source: Hopkins County Schools/Facebook)
Hopkins County Schools has announced that members of the South Hopkins Middle School Robotics Club captured a state championship during the recent Student Technology Leadership Program (STLP) state competition.
School officials said the South Hopkins Middle School Drone Challenge team won 1st place in their division, which included approximately 25 teams.
According to officials, team members expressed surprise and excitement about their finish, after they had spent about a month practicing by navigating the drone through courses they set up in the school hallway.
The Drone Challenge team members include Carter Miles, Weston Smith, Jimmy Queen and Brantley Groves.
The Student Technology Leadership Program is a statewide event where Kentucky students showcase technology-based projects, including robotics, media, and coding. This was the first time for South Hopkins Middle School to participate.
In a written statement, Robotics Club adviser Jennifer Edwards shared that the middle school team also competed in three additional categories. She said that they had a great time and the kids had a blast. She noted that participating in robotics has helped the students be more confident in themselves.
Alexander Burchfield, representing South Hopkins Middle School as the sole team member, achieved 9th place in the Line Follow event.
Furthermore, officials said the school achieved a top 12 finish out of 44 teams in the Sumo Bot competition. Team members are Miles Hoard, Kole Knott, Carter Miles, Brantley Hight, and Neilan Bruce. They’re still waiting for the results from the Sphero Hero competition, where Carleigh Stone and Katelyn Creekmur represented the school.
Last year, officials said the Robotics Club had 10 members, but this year it expanded to 35. Edwards mentioned that they recently conducted a demonstration for the 5th grade at Southside and are hoping to boost interest for next year.
