Robo-Lions of Liberty High School Seek Funding
Alicia McCarty July 25, 2008

Liberty High School’s Robotics team, the Robo-Lions, is entering its third year this summer, hoping to continue on without provided grants. The Robo-Lions, although affiliated with LHS, are not funded by the school.

Public Relations Coordinator for the Robo-Lions Kelly Heyden explained that for the first two years their team has received funding from NASA to plan, build, and compete with their robot. “But since we’re entering our third year,” she said, “we can’t receive those grants anymore.” This is why the Robo-Lions are seeking corporate sponsorships and donations.

“The education you gain through the program is priceless,” said Heyden, “ask anyone on the team and they could tell you they've learned more within the robotics team about engineering then they have in their own tech-ed classes.”

The team is part of FIRST (For the Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), which is a non-profit international organization that creates the challenge given to robotics teams around the world. Upon receiving the challenge and a basic kit of parts, the team has six weeks to build a robot ready for competition.

The team’s major goal for the upcoming season: Make it to nationals in Atlanta, Georgia. Last year they were able to compete in one regional competition, which was held at the Naval Academy in Annapolis. They hope that this year they will be able to raise enough money to compete in a second regional competition and to find a permanent workshop/storage space for their robots, as Heyden explained.

The Robo-Lions originated in 2004 thanks to LHS alumnus Zach Rubin, who decided to start a team at his high school after becoming interested in robotics at the Carroll County Career and Tech Center, which had a team that was open to students county-wide.

If you are interested in the Robo-Lions Robotics team visit their website at robolions.org

Also, check out the “Robo-lions Videos”