Three Pine-Richland students from BrainSTEM Learning earned a bid to the FIRST Robotics World Championship in Houston, Texas. Senior Ryan Scott and eighth graders Piya Dargan and Keerthana Visveish are part of the Giant Diencephalic BrainSTEM Robotics Team. The team is named after a part of the human brain and is committed to outreach through their Robots Without Borders mission.
The team’s outreach efforts include leading over 100 events to break down barriers that prevent children from reaching their full potential. They have created STEM activity kits for the Ronald McDonald House, raised funds for humanitarian relief in Haiti, started robotics teams in Central America, and developed a STEM career pathway for students in Allegheny Public Housing. This dedication to outreach is presented to judges at competitions.
At the Greater Pittsburgh Regional event in March, the team received the Regional Engineering Inspiration Award, earning them a team sponsorship from NASA and a spot at the World Championship. They also received the Regional FIRST Impact Award at the Miami Valley Regional event in Cincinnati, solidifying their place at the World Championship. The team advanced to the second round of judging for Engineering Inspiration at the global level.
Ryan, the team’s business and outreach lead, mentioned that he initially joined the team for programming or engineering but found his passion in the business and outreach aspect. He finds helping others just as rewarding as building robots. FIRST Robotics is an international youth organization that aims to inspire and recognize achievements in science and technology through various competitions.