ABOUT RED STORM ROBOTICS
The Ultimate Sport For the Mind
We call FIRST Robotics Competition the ultimate sport for the mind. Student participants call it “the hardest fun you’ll ever have.” From meeting for five days a week and spending over a hundred hours working with one another to build a robot, our teams are dedicated to the FIRST program.
Under strict rules, limited time, and resources, teams of students are challenged to raise funds, design a team "brand," hone teamwork skills, and build and program robots to play a difficult field game against others. It’s as close to real-world engineering as a student can get. Volunteer professional mentors lend their time and talents to guide each team.
Where We Started
FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) was established in 1989, with the competitive season initiated in 1992. FIRST® uses robotics as a "Varsity sport for the mind" to engage students in science and technology.
In December 2010, FIRST® in Michigan asked East Kentwood High School (EKHS) and GE Aviation to establish a FIRST® Robotics team. The Red Storm Robotics Team #3875 at EKHS was formed in January 2011 and immediately began the 2011 FIRST® Robotics build season. Within 6 weeks of the team forming, the East Kentwood members:
Developed a team identity and brand (name, logo, website)
Built a “top-seeded” robot
Collaborated with the middle school FIRST® Lego League teams to build a “mini-bot”
Had fun and learned lots.
Remarkably, at the West Michigan competition, Red Storm was named Highest Rookie Seed and qualified for state. As excited as we were to have qualified, we were unable to attend the state competition that year due to our lack of funding.
The realization that our team did not have the resources to go as far in the competition as we were eligible for was disheartening, to say the least. However, we knew that if we wanted to succeed next season, we would have to stay positive and obtain further support from local businesses or industries.
Red Storm Robotics Vision Statement
Red Storm Robotics seeks to inspire students in science, technology, engineering, and leadership while participating in the FIRST® Robotics Competition and other technology programs.
Our Mission
Our Goal is to create a strong, sustainable robotics team that will:
Welcome students and make them feel like an important part of the team.
Inspire aptitude in technology, including mechanics, electronics, programming, Computer-aided Design (CAD for short), website building, animation, and machining, in addition to other robotics-related skills.
Teach associated skills including marketing, administration, leadership, communication, photography, budgeting, project planning, and other areas necessary to run a sustainable FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC) team.
Allow team members to collaborate with mentors in engineering fields.
Effectively compete while following the FIRST® theme of cooperation and Gracious Professionalism.
Make FIRST® happen for West Michigan through our FIRST® Lego League Explore (FLLE), FIRST® Lego League Challenge (FLLC), FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC) and FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC) teams, outreach, workshops, scrimmages, and competitions.
Off-Season Activities
During the off-season, Red Storm Robotics (other than during COVID years):
Recognizes team accomplishments at an annual banquet, including the presentation of varsity letters in robotics
Meets weekly in the Summer and Fall to develop skills needed for the build season
Demonstrates the robot for: schools, stores, movie theaters, community events, parades, and sponsors
Mentors teams at the elementary school FIRST® Lego League and middle school FIRST® Tech Challenge
Hosts middle school summer robotics weekly camp (since 2018)
Hosts the middle school FTC rookie chassis workshop (since 2015)
Hosts the middle school FTC district competition (since 2012)
Hosts scrimmages for FLL (since 2013) and FTC (since 2014)
Hosts the upper elementary FLL Challenge district competition (since 2022)
Hosts the high school FRC rookie build workshop (since 2015)
Co-hosts the Grand Rapids Girls competition (since 2016)
Participate in off-season competitions (e.g. WMRI, RoboDays)
Supports GE’s Community Day during projects at local schools (since 2011)
Regularly volunteer at CompRenew recycling (since 2018)
Designs and fabricates robot trainers for: automatic wheelchairs for disabled children, and target ranges for Kentwood police department
Since 2015, we have been hosting the Kentwood District FIRST® Robotics Competition. We have approximately 40 teams and ~2000 people attend on average. It takes over 150 volunteers to run the competition with our team doing the majority of the organizing, set-up, and promotion. We will host the 2023 competition March 31st to April 1st at East Kentwood High School.
After moving into our own dedicated robotics space in 2018, we doubled our robotics facility size, acquired additional metal-working equipment, and added another Mechatronics class. We enjoy having dedicated spaces to mentor our FTC teams, and expand our capabilities.
Given our year over year improvement, we expect to do great things this year!