Schools collided when the UIL Robotics team visited Kline Whitis Elementary and LMS Wednesday Oct. 17 to show off their newly produced robot. The team, consisting of roughly 22 students, spent a total of around six weeks to complete the robot, while also preparing games and demonstrations for the kids.

“We went to visit the elementary and middle school kids to inspire them,” senior and Captain Hailey Reiss said. “We also want to get them to pursue STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math) and be interested in robotics.”

The Robotics team consists of four departments – building, programming, marketing and computer-aided design (CAD).

“I am on the CAD team,” freshman Taylor Mathini said. “We get to make 3D models of our robot and see if it can actually work in a real-world situation.”

It took around four weeks to build the robot, while two were dedicated to planning and research.

“[On the building team] we basically come up with the design and run that through the process of getting it built,” senior Zachary Coates said. “Everything seems built for the right specifications for competition”

This organization is taught by computer and engineering teacher Damon Reed.

“Robotics is a combination of a lot of different STEM related fields,” Reed said. “This is my second year [teaching Robotics] at Lampasas High School, and I did it for two years prior at another district.”

The Robotics team competed in their first competition Saturday in Liberty Hill.  

“We had to modify the robot because it got stuck the first time,” junior Alexis Hamilton said. “Still, it went well. We didn’t make it to state but we did get a lot of points. I think we tied for eleventh place.”