On Saturday, October 25, Bridgewater Raynham Regional High School in Bridgewater, Massachusetts held its first annual Robotics Conference.  Robotics Inside-Out was hosted by TJ², the local FIRST Robotics Team, one of the veteran teams of the fourteen-year-old organization that pairs engineers with students in a challenging learning environment.

The conference drew people from all around the country who were interested in the growing field of robotics, from Indiana to nearby New England States.  Donald Mazzella, board member of the National Robotics Education Foundation, came to oversee the proceedings and co-host the event with Liz Calef and Anne Hall from TJ². To introduce teachers to Lego Mindstorm LXT kits, Kevin Staszowski of The Tufts University Center for Engineering Educational Outreach guided them through the production of a simple robot to wet their appetites and to teach them skills they can take back to their schools.

During the catered lunch, a panel assembled for the discussion of tech-related questions involving robotics in education and the real world.  Thomas Calef, a former member of TJ² and current engineer for Hatch Technologies, talked of how the FIRST robotics team taught him important life skills and how it inspired him to become an engineer.  From a different stand-point, Tom Atwood, Editor-in-Chief of Robot Magazine, spoke of the importance of engineering in the everyday life, and how the new generation of engineers needs to be broadened to include more people that are able to cope with new issues that the current generations have yet to solve.

Between lunch and presentations, the members of TJ², decked in their tie-dye uniforms, guided attendees around the High School and gave them a closer look at how a robotics team is run.  In their two-year-old 'robot room' they gave lessons on how to create your own tie-dye, for the team makes all of their uniforms from plain white shirts.  Some students were hard at work in one of the classrooms at their disposal creating robots from Vex kits for this year's Savage Soccer game, which is a competition held by Worchester Polytechnic Institute each year.

Representatives from Vex Robotics and Autodesk were present at Robotics Inside-Out to pique the interest of teachers interested in starting a team and answer questions for all on the systems.  Brad Lauer, Senior Manager of Vex Robotics Design System said "Vex is excited to be here with Autodesk and to have the opportunity to show the teachers and students how to transfer their enthusiasm into real-world skills.  I have to thank TJ² for taking this idea and making it into a reality. We are looking forward to coming back next year."  Not to be out-done, Greg Donald, the Sales Executive from Autodesk, said "Autodesk is pleased to be here with Vex Robotics…we were delighted to have the opportunity to attend the first-annual New England Robotics Conference and to talk to parents and educators about the curriculum we developed to introduce robotics into the classroom.  It is great to see growing support for robotics education in Massachusetts.  We look forward to returning next year."

The Conference was well-received by all and an all-around educational experience.  "It was well-planned, the food was great, and I got to do a lot of networking with the people in robotics," Steve Bardonner of Visual Edge told us of the Conference.  On a continued positive note, Daniel Ward, a keynote speaker from Ivy Tech Community College, said "It was a good place to start.  We need to have these all over the country, but this was a good starting point due to all the local interest.  It was an interesting mix of people.  It is impressive that so many teachers were willing to take one of their days off to come here."  Three teachers and a parent won Lego kits and a small completed robot from a raffle.  Wanting to ensure that everyone got a little something to take home, Anne Hall also compiled goody-bags filled with such things as robotics magazines, pamphlets, and a copy of Solid Works software for all to further pursue their interest in bringing robotics to the classroom.

Educators and parents left well-fed and more learned in the area of robotics, many going back to their respective towns intending to start their own robotics teams in local schools.  As for the host-team, TJ², they went home after a long day satisfied that they had done their part to spread the true meaning of robotics.

The United States is currently in dire need of more engineers to solve current and future problems.  The field of engineering continues to develop at a faster rate due to the strong career path it provides along with the growing demands of the industrialized world.  With more conferences such as Robotics Inside-Out, the word of engineering will continue to spread and will help to educate people on the subject of robotics in practical use.  As for existing teams and their members, FIRST and its supporters remain the largest contributors' to the engineering pool with over 80,000 people currently involved, and this iconoclast continues to grow with new vigor each year.  Engineers create the future, so it is important that we continue to get younger generations involved in this interesting and expansive field.

Article by Kasey MacTighe