FIRST LEGO League 'City Shaper' Challenge winners announced

Area students recently got a taste of the fun side of STEM.

On Nov. 23, Southeast Missouri State University hosted a FIRST LEGO League, or FLL, robotics competition, themed "City Shaper," for 15 teams of students in fourth through eighth grades.

Organizer and department chair of Engineering and Technology Brad Deken said the competition offers young students an opportunity to explore the STEM field while having a fun, cooperative experience.

Submitted Students participate in the 2019 FIRST LEGO League "City Shaper" Challenge held Nov. 23 at Southeast Missouri State University.

This year, for the first time in the competition's six-year history, Deken said, teams from public schools participated.

Kevin McMeel, an instructor in the department and long-time volunteer with the event, said the FLL competition is great for area students and is a lot of fun besides.

"It's amazing what they can do and accomplish," McMeel said.

Submitted Students participate in the 2019 FIRST LEGO League "City Shaper" Challenge held Nov. 23 at Southeast Missouri State University.

It's a new experience for the students, and they bring a lot of energy to it, he added.

The competitive aspect is balanced by encouraged cooperation, McMeel said. Teams borrow equipment from each other if they've forgotten anything, or in case of malfunction, he said.

Student teams competed in several events. Judges awarded teams for robot design and research projects on problems faced by a building in a city, gracious professionalism and achieving excellence and innovation.

The Robot Performance Award competition saw students direct their robots through city-themed missions on an 8 by 8 field. Mechanical design, innovation, effectiveness and team strategies were evaluated, and overall design quality was another factor.

In addition to the team awards, McMeel was awarded a LEGO Trophy for the significant role he has played in hosting the FIRST LEGO League competitions at the university since 2013, according to a news release.

"No one is at a disadvantage," McMeel said of competition participants. "To see them excited about the STEM fields doesn't hurt. We need youth to go in that direction."

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List of FLL winners

Winning teams at the Nov. 23 competition are:

Project Award

• Tech Titans of Cape Girardeau
• SEMO Kidbots of Cape Girardeau and Jackson

Robot Design Award

• Cryptic Coders of Cape Girardeau
• Savage Bots of Jackson

Robot Performance Award

• Spare Parts of Cape Girardeau
• Savage Bots of Jackson

Core Values Award

• MOBOTS of Jackson
• Eaglebots of Jackson

The Champion's Award

• Spare Parts of Cape Girardeau
• MOBOTS 2.0 of Jackson

Golden Ticket winners, who will advance to the Eastern Missouri FLL Championship on Jan. 12, 2020:

• Spare Parts of Cape Girardeau
• MOBOTS 2.0 of Jackson
• Cryptic Coders of Cape Girardeau