One of the teams, Polytechnic Puzzle Pieces, from O’Fallon, competes in the league.
The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s School of Engineering (SOE) hosted the Southern Illinois For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) Tech Challenge robotics league on Saturday, Nov. 19 in the SOE’s Enterprise Holdings Foundation Atrium.
Eleven teams from the southern Illinois region came together to compete by designing and building robots to achieve specific game tasks on a competition field.
“As both a faculty member in the SOE and a mentor to one of the teams, it was great to see all the students come together to compete and have fun,” said Jon Klingensmith, PhD, associate professor and chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. “These teams put a lot of hard work into their robots, and it is always inspiring to see what they come up with.”
The redesigned space of the Enterprise Holdings Foundation Atrium, thanks to a generous donation from the Enterprise Holding Foundations, is an environment that helps foster innovation and amplifies students’ passion for engineering and robotics.
“Community connections like this robotics competition are vital to SIUE and the SOE and aid them in the mission of training the next generation of future technical leaders,” Klingensmith added.
The robotic teams will compete in future leagues in the coming months, leading up to a qualifying tournament in February.
The School of Engineering offers one of the most comprehensive and affordable engineering programs in the St. Louis region with eight undergraduate degrees, five master’s degrees and two cooperative doctoral programs, all housed in a state-of-the-art facility.
Students learn from expert faculty, perform cutting-edge research and participate in intercollegiate design competitions. Companies in the metropolitan St. Louis area provide students challenging internships and co-op opportunities, which often turn into permanent employment.
All undergraduate programs are accredited by their respective accreditation agencies.
