FIRST Robotics qualifier held in Kingsford

KINGSFORD, Mich. (WLUC) – Students from all over Michigan grabbed their safety glasses and headed to Kingsford High School for the FIRST Robotics Kingsford qualifier.

“Today we started our qualification matches for our Kingsford district qualifier. We had 40 teams that came in at 8 a.m. this morning. They got their robots inspected and their safety glasses on, and they started to practice,” said Education Director for FIRST Michigan, Amanda Gibbons.

Though they may have only had a few hours of practice this morning, students have been preparing for this event for weeks.

“We get six weeks to actually build the robot and then we get six hours between those six weeks and competition to work on the robot, as well. And, as soon as we get here we get to work on the robot as much as we can before we get into matches,” explained Calumet Team Captain, Tajah-Ravny Davaise.

Kingsford has only hosted this event for a couple of years, however it has provided amazing opportunities for students to showcase their talents.

“FIRST brings out things in the students that have always been there. It lets them shine, it lets our kids show us who they really are,” Gibbons continued.

Davaise said she instantly fell in love with the program.

“It’s the best program I’ve ever been a part of. And it teaches me so much. I’ve learned the mechanics, electrical, computer aided design, but we’ve also learned teamwork and how to talk to people and other teams.”

The competition continues through Saturday.