CNSE-Supported Robotics Tourney: Adults Cheer as the Kids Play On

By Andrew McMains

The adults at the Albany Capital Center talked about the growing need for engineers and how robotics competitions help cultivate them. But the kids playing games with robots and plastic pins just wanted to have fun.

Indeed, there was something for everyone at the Capital Region Classic, the first national VEX IQ Robotics competition for elementary and middle school students in the region. Thirteen teams vied for a half-dozen awards and a chance to compete in a statewide contest. First, though, they had to steer their robots to grab and move pins on a 6-by-8-foot game board.  

Each match lasted 60 seconds, with one teammate working a controller while others pointed and called out moves. Around them were TV and computer monitors counting down the time in large white numbers, an emcee offering commentary and a referee. A few feet away, parents and siblings watched, applauded and captured the action on smartphones.
 

Growing access 

The matches were livestreamed on YouTube. It had all the trappings of a sporting event — something that organizer Javier Pulecio referenced in welcoming remarks.

“This should be celebrated and supported just as big as any other sport,” said Pulecio, co-founder of STEAMwhiz, which presented the tournament in partnership with the College of Nanotechnology, Science, and Engineering (CNSE) at the University at Albany. “We’re just trying to grow access and opportunity.”

“This is how you learn what engineering looks like and what engineers do,” added Jeff Offutt, a CNSE professor who chairs its Department of Computer Science. “Engineers build things. We fix things. We also break things!”

Tourneys like the Capital Region Classic aim to spark interest in STEM, as the need for scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians grows. Cultivating engineers in particular is central to the mission of CNSE, which offers degrees in disciplines such as electrical engineering, environmental and sustainable engineering and nanoscale science. 
 

Tech ecosystem  

CNSE’s Department of Nanoscale Science & Engineering is at the Albany NanoTech Complex that’s also home to semiconductor developers like IBM and Tokyo Electron Limited. As such, higher education and industry are part of the same technology ecosystem — a point that another spectator, state Sen. Patricia Fahy, made during a break in the action.

“We are really making ourselves the tech valley of upstate, between Micron, between GlobalFoundries and, of course, CNSE, and all the nanotechnology here,” Fahy said. “So, the opportunities are limitless in upstate New York given the investments. And what you are learning now will come back to benefit you so much.”

U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko echoed that sentiment, noting that Micron Technology is developing a complex near Syracuse that will create thousands of jobs. As for the budding engineers in the room — among a crowd of about 150 — he said: “Thank you for your curiosity. Thank you for your skill. Thank you for your competitive spirit.”

After a group photo with the adults, the kids returned to the board, grabbing pins and scoring points. The teams played on.

Awards

At the culmination of the Capital City Classic, another organizer, Eric Wood, handed out six awards to four teams:

Judge’s Award — The Smart Powerhouse of Glens Falls

Robot Skills — Magnificent Mangos of Guilderland  

Innovate Award — Brain Bots of Queensbury

Design Award — Blue Watermelons of Guilderland

Teamwork Champion (for a two-team alliance) — Magnificent Mangos and Brain Bots

Excellence — Magnificent Mangos