Events and competitions across the country may have been canceled, but the Cyber Eagles still finished the 2019-20 robotics season with much to celebrate. Find out how they fared and learn how CCA’s robotics programs are preparing students for a bright future. We can’t wait to see what the 2020-21 school year holds for our Cyber Eagles!
What is STEM Education and Why is it Important?
There’s a lot of hype around STEM, but what is it exactly, and why is it so important for students? STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math — subjects that are instrumental to developing children’s problem-solving and critical thinking skills. As our world grows more complex, there is a greater need for people who can use their imaginations and technology to solve complicated problems. STEM programs prepare students to one day fill the ever-growing, valuable, and necessary jobs in related industries.
There is a greater need for people who can use their imaginations and technology to solve complicated problems.
What is a Robotics Program?
Robotics takes STEM education to another level by adding exploration, competition, and most importantly, fun! Calvary Christian Academy’s Robotics program trains students to design, build, and program
VEX Robots to perform in state and national competitions. The teams are called the “Cyber Eagles” and include elementary, middle, and high school teams. Students compete against other robotics teams from all over the state, nation, and world. As they compete, the Cyber Eagles also use these events as opportunities to share Christ through their integrity, kindness, and sportsmanship.
Students compete against other robotics teams from all over the state, nation, and world.
Honoring CCA’s Robotics Graduates
There are three graduates from the class of 2020 who helped make this year’s robotics season such a success — Zach Champion, Zach Webb, and Matt Enders.
Zach Champion’s performance in robotics helped him achieve a full-ride scholarship to
Florida Institute of Technology where he will study computer engineering. Zach Webb will be attending the University of Florida’s Honors College where he will study computer science; he is also a National Merit Finalist and recipient of the Benacquisto Scholarship, which grants him a full-ride to UF. Last but not least, Matt Enders will be attending the University of South Florida to study industrial engineering with a full Bright Futures Scholarship and Scholars Gold Award (a $12,000 scholarship over the course of four years).
We are so proud of all our seniors and are confident they will carry the work ethic, sportsmanship, and critical thinking skills they developed with the Cyber Eagles with them every step of their collegiate and professional journeys.
CCA’s 2020 Robotics Program Achievements
Team Y of the Cyber Eagles qualified for nationals and the world competition, which were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team won awards for skills and excellence and were invited to compete in “Night at the Museum” in Washington, D.C. — a trip that was made possible by
Spirit Airlines’ generous donation of 12 round-trip tickets for the team, which included luggage! Team Y also received an invitation to compete in a tournament that was to be hosted by Google on their Sunnyvale, California campus.
Though the season was cut short, there’s still much to celebrate! Check out these highlights from Calvary Christian Academy’s robotics season and please join us in congratulating our students for a job well done.
Team 77788Y: Aiden Hatcher, Sunshine Hobby, Cristen Knapp, Josiah Lane, and Zach Champion
- Final World Skills ranking: 32 out 8,614 teams
- Qualified for Nationals and Worlds
- Florida Regional Championship Excellence Award
- Florida Regional Championship Robot Skills Champions
- Ransom Everglades Tournament Champions
- WCS Tournament Champions
- Miami Coral Park Robot Skills Champions
- Miami Coral Park Sportsmanship Award
- WCS Robot Skills Champions
Team 77788H: Parker Hatcher, James Stone, Anaya Edmead, Luke Richardson, and Ian Hobby)
- Winners of Excellence Award at RoboSLAM
- Tournament Finalists at Mater Academy
- Qualified for Nationals
Team 77788G: Ethan Miller, Frederic Stresau, Zach Webb, and Rachel Lomenick
- Tournament Champions at Ransom Everglades
- Qualified for Nationals
Team 77788B: Owen Eller, Amanda Rodriguez, Madison Ricker, Paul Patullo, Matthew Enders, and Matthew Taylor
- 5th place at Mater Academy
- Qualified for Regionals
Middle School Teams
Team 87531G: Sophia Angel, Caleb Lopez, Elizabeth Marchand, and Ashton Tully
- Qualified for VEX IQ State Championship
- Qualified for US Create Open (Nationals)
- Ranked 51st out of 5,519 competitors in the world
- Ranked 3rd out of 279 competitors in the state
Team 87531B: Andrew Barber, Will Del Busto, and Jonny Panella
- Qualified for VEX IQ State Championship
- Qualified for US Create Open (Nationals)
- Ranked 324th out of 5,519 competitors in the world
- Ranked 27th out of 279 competitors in the state
Team 87531C: Alice Andrade, Alec McEwen, Joshua Runde, and Joshua White
- Qualified for VEX IQ State Championship
- Qualified for US Create Open (Nationals)
- Ranked 421st out of 5,519 competitors in the world
- Winner of Excellence Award at State Championship
Elementary Team
87531D: Caroline Combs, Riley Hatcher, Kaitlyn Yates, Megan Washburn, and Spencer Johansson
- Qualified for the US Create Open (Nationals)
Despite unexpected changes, these students gave this robotics season their very best and modeled a Christ-like attitude in the process. Robotics continues to be a fun and challenging outlet for students to grow their skills in STEM education, and it’s been a blessing seeing the program continue to grow year after year. We can’t wait to see what the 2020-21 school year holds for our Cyber Eagles!