Robotics is teamwork and fun with friends

TCU Robotics Club held an open house at the Le Center school on Tuesday, Nov. 26, with a full house from the 5 p.m. start time to beyond its end time.

Many may see robotics as a nerdy adventure, and in a lot of ways, it probably is. But, nerdy is cool, and the open house and students interested in participating in robotics is proving that.

Some students, such as Jake Ripp, started with a curious mind at a much earlier age than some. “At age three I got him a robotics kit,” said his mother, Suzi Ripp. “He’s done a lot of kits. The last one he did was a solar climber.”

Jake Ripp spends a lot of his time enjoying robotics, outside of school work and playing baseball, and is happy to finally be able to be a part of the robotics team now that he is in the 7th grade. He attended the TCU Robotics Camp, a week-long camp offered annually by robotics advisors through community education. The camp has a Robotics 1 course, for grades 3-6, and a Robotics 2 course, for grades 7-8 — both held at the robotics area of the TCU Le Center PreK-8 School (former industrial arts area).

“It’s fun,” Jake Ripp said. “You get to meet some really good buddies.” Even buddies have disagreements on how to do things though. “We have differences and then put them up for vote on what to do. Whoever has the most votes is what we do then,” he said. This democratic spirit didn’t come with any sort of hostility either, just an understanding that they are all working together as a team and there needs to be order to proceed.

The TCU Robotics Club is growing, and the open house was both a chance for parents and the community to see what the club is doing and for anyone who might be interested to ask questions or to see first-hand to remove some of the fears of joining.

“We are seeing more younger students joining,” TCU Robotics Head Advisor Jeff Ballman said. “The bots keep getting more and more complex, and that transfers, grows, at the high school level.”

Currently the club has three high school and three middle school teams, but Ballman says...

To see more on this story pick up the December 5, 2024 print edition of the Montgomery Messenger. 

TCU Robotics Club Competition Dates

Dec. 14 New Ulm Cathedral High School

Dec. 20 MN State Univ. Mankato Myers Field House

Jan. 11, 2025 TCU Le Center PreK-8 School

Feb. 15 Albert Lea High School

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