Cheering fans, blaring instruments, and pounding drums — you may think of a football or soccer game. But this is no sporting event. It’s a game of the future.

On Saturday morning the University of West Florida Field House buzzed with activity and the Emerald Coast BEST Robotics competition whirred to a start.

 

The futuristic competition plays out in an arena setting complete with referees, cheerleaders, mascots and cheering students. A deafening din fills the air as 21 area high schools and middle schools compete with their robots, all a part of an initiative to inspire students to pursue careers in engineering, science and technology. Gulf Power Company is the major sponsor of BEST — Boosting, Engineering, Science and Technology. 

 

This year’s theme, “Total Recall,” is a word play on quality control. In the competition, students will control their robots to successfully process and package as much “good” product as possible while striving for Six Sigma quality levels on each production line. Some products may be identified as “defective” and will be “recalled.” 

 

It’s all a part of an initiative to inspire students to pursue careers in engineering, science and technology through participation in a sports-like, science and engineering-based robotics competition each fall. Student teams are judged on robot performance, marketing presentation, team exhibit/interview, project engineering notebook, and spirit and sportsmanship.

 

Josh King, eleventh grader from Escambia High School, said the competition helped him realize how important science and math are to real world application.

 

“To get ready for this you have to use the whole engineering design process,” said King. “It starts with brainstorming, then design, then prototype and then final product. We really had fun out there.”

 

King plans to pursue an Architectural Engineering degree at the University of West Florida.

 

King’s teacher and lead teacher for the Robotics Club Bob Rainey said BEST helps get the students excited about science and math.

 

“They have to apply their skills in math and science and engineering,” said Rainey. “This is something really authentic the students can get involved with. BEST Robotics prepares them because everything in life is going to be a project for them, and they’re going to have to overcome problems.”

 

Max Levesque, a sixth grader and part of the team from Workman Middle School that won first place in the robotics competition, said involvement in robotics had given him a greater interest in math.

 

“This is something different than what I usually do in school,” said Levesque, “I actually kind of like math better now.”

 

Introduced by two MIT students, BEST — Boosting Engineering Science and Technology — has grown into a nationally recognized competition challenging more than 50,000 participants since its start in 1993.

 

Area schools have been competing since 2004, when Gulf Power sponsored eight local teams in the regional competition in Mobile. Twenty schools across Northwest Florida participated in the regionals, and the top schools will advance to competition at Auburn University.

 

Students had six weeks to build their robots and teams were judged on robot performance, oral presentation, table display, project notebook, spirit and sportsmanship.

 

Four schools in Northwest Florida were among the winners that will advance to the finals at Auburn University on Nov. 18 – 20: Woodlawn Middle School, Bethlehem K-12, Workman Middle and Woodham Middle.

 

BEST Award

1. Woodham Middle School

2. Woodlawn Beach Middle School

3. Seaside Neighborhood Middle School

 

Robotics Award

1. Workman Middle School

2. Bethlehem K-12

3. Milton High School

4. Woodham Middle

 

Best Team Website

Seaside Neighborhood Middle School

 

Best T-shirt Design

1. Hobbs Middle School

2. Sims Middle School

3. Woodham Middle School

 

Founders Award for Creative Design

Seaside Neighborhood Middle School

 

Most Robust Robot

Workman Middle School

 

Most Photogenic Robot

Merritt Brown Middle School

 

Most Elegant Machine

Milton High School

 

Best Team Exhibit and Interview

1. Holley Navarre Middle School

2. Woodlawn Beach Middle School

3. Merritt Brown Middle School

 

Best Marketing Presentation

1. Woodham Middle School

2. Holley-Navarre Middle School

3. Woodlawn Beach Middle School

 

Best Project Engineering Notebook

1. Bethlehem K-12

2. Woodlawn Beach Middle School

3. Seaside Neighborhood Middle School

 

Best Spirit and Sportsmanship

1. Woodham Middle School

2. Seaside Neighborhood Middle School

3. Sims Middle School

 

Gulf Power- Blood, Sweat and Duct Tape Award

Tate High School

 

 

This year’s teams

Bay County: Merritt Brown Middle School, Deane Bozeman K-12 School,

Escambia County: Bailey Middle School, Bellview Middle School, Workman Middle School, Escambia High School, Pensacola High School, Tate High School, West Florida High School, Woodham Middle School

Holmes County: Bethlehem K-12 School

Jackson County: Cottondale High School

Okaloosa County: Max Bruner Middle School

Santa Rosa County: Avalon Middle School, Gulf Breeze Middle School, Hobbs Middle School, Milton High School, Pace High School, Sims Middle School, Woodlawn Beach Middle School

Walton County: Seaside Neighborhood Middle School

 

For more information, see http://www.uwf.edu/ece/EmeraldCoastBEST/

 

 

Gulf Power is committed to help put science and math on a fun level with students while teaching the skills needed to join the workforce. Another educational program, I LOVE SCIENCE, provides a one-hour, hands-on science project each month in fifth grade classrooms. To find out more about Gulf Power’s education initiatives, please visit www.gulfpower.com/ecodev/wf_development.asp.

 

Gulf Power Company is an investor-owned electric utility with all of its common stock owned by Atlanta-based Southern Company. Gulf Power serves more than 400,000 customers in 10 counties throughout Northwest Florida. The company’s mission is to safely deliver affordable, reliable and environmentally responsible energy to very satisfied customers in strong communities.