Seventeen students from across the country gathered at the University of South Carolina for a week of hands-on robotics at the Advanced Vex Robotics. Students with a passion for STEM were given the opportunity to engage in a program taught by STEM educator Jonathon Scrivner. Throughout the week, campers furthered their skills in designing bots and coding.
Since 2006, the University of South Carolina hosts the annual summer VEX Robotics Camp as a part of their outreach program to foster future engineers. By combining academic instruction and various activities, the camp provides an opportunity for young learners to access university-level education and mentorship. The system challenges students to design, build and program robots to complete tasks.
Scrivner used to teach middle school science and was a part of the robotics lab. He took these skills to USC to teach educators and students, later becoming an instructor at the VEX robotics camp.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for them to come in and see automation and robotics in a fun and educational setting,” he said.
14-year-old Will from Lexington is one of the campers with a passion for robotics.
“I want to be able to achieve like understanding a robot and how it works,” he said.
Another student, 17-year-old Mirka from Columbia, has no experience in the robotics field prior to this camp.
She said it is, “a good camp to learn more about I guess like the robots and how like things can work.”
At the end of the week, campers will use the skills they have learned for a final competition. Using coding, brains, and original robots, campers will face off against each other in a final match. Aundrea Simpson, a 17-year-old from Myrtle Beach is another camper.
“We’re prepping for our competition on Friday morning, dealing with our robots and controlling them,” Simpson said.
As the camp comes to a close, students will leave with new skills, understanding in collaboration, and preservation.
“I’ve learned how to think properly,” Will said, “growing more effectively and one step at a time.”
