In April, a group of students from the Davidson Academy and TMCC High School formed a new robotics team dubbed The Ionizers, to compete in a major robotics competition.
A few months later, on July 24, their first robot, SCooBY (Super Cool Baseball Yeeter), threw the first pitch at the Reno Aces game, against the Oklahoma City Comets at Greater Nevada Field.
The original group consisted of Dana Schrock, 16; Max Clemetsen, 17; Myla Clemetsen, 15; and Brayden Law, 17. The team now includes 15 students, grades 8-12, from five schools.
The baseball event was part of a fundraiser to help the group raise $50,000 to compete in national and international robotics competitions.
“There’s this international nonprofit organization called FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), and it has different levels,” said Dana, who is part of the mechanical division and works on the physical manufacturing and fabrication of parts. She added that The Ionizers compete at the highest level.
Thousands of teams, from more than 110 countries, including more than 3 million young people have participated in FIRST competitions since the group’s inception in 1989, according to its website. Every year, in the first week of January, participants are given a game that requires them to design, build and program a large robot, around 120 pounds and capable of moving at 25 to 30 miles an hour.
“It’s like a YouTube video that’s like three hours long, and it explains the whole game and everything we’re trying to do,” said Max, who is the head programmer and writes code. “Then, from there, we are building our robot until the middle of March, when we go to competition.”
Depending on how well The Ionizers’ yet-to-be-built robot performs in the competition, they will either be done with their season, or move on to the world championships.
“At every competition, there are 40 to 60 robots, and only one or two makes it to world championships,” Max said.
Leading the team are Eric Schrock and Andy Webb, who are considered “lead mentors.”
Eric, an engineer by trade, explained some of the benefits of being on a robotics team. He said students are “working with tools that we use in the industry” and that the competition provides students with “a very real-world project with a very real-world deadline using real-world tools.”
Webb, who has been involved in FIRST for 16 years, noted, “They don’t have vocational training in high schools much anymore. … This combines high-tech technology with vocational training.”
He added that safety is always the top priority. “I mean, we’re using power tools and sharp metal and things like that,” he said.
Jennifer Munro, a coordinator for the Aerospace and Defense Academy at the University of Nevada, Reno’s College of Business, serves as “team coach” and loves how the FIRST program recognizes kids for their individual strengths.
“It doesn’t matter what you’re good at,” Munro said. “Doing a community team like this, it takes so many different people to make it happen.”
She said the FIRST program helps kids step out of their comfort zones, improve their speaking skills and gain confidence. The core values of FIRST include discovery, innovation, impact, inclusion, teamwork, fun, gracious professionalism and what the team calls “cooperition.”
“It’s a combination of the words cooperation and competition,” said Dana. “So even though you have all these teams from different places competing against each other, it’s a really connected community of students who just want to help each other out.”
Shruthi I., 16, who asked the RN&R not to use her last name, is the team’s business-marketing lead. She said being a part of The Ionizers is more than just a project; it feels like running a small business, where students and mentors band together “to solve the thousands of little last-minute problems that will arise, whether it’s for the technical aspect, like the code isn’t running or the robot is glitching, or fundraising and outreach.”
A malfunction—and learning experience
In the week leading up to the Aces game, Max said the team was about “a lot more than just robotics.”
“We also do a lot of outreach events like this to spread awareness of robotics in our community,” he said.
The Ionizers work out of The Generator, the nonprofit makerspace known for its Burning Man art.
“It’s really, really cool to be at The Generator, because they’re artists, and they have such a fresh perspective,” Shruthi said. “It’s really amazing to hear a different outlook, because, although it may not be robotics-focused, it’s still incredibly helpful to hear what they have to say, and what it looks like from a completely different perspective.”
When it was time to throw out the first pitch, a few Ionizers carried SCooBY, donned with an Aces ballcap, to the pitcher’s mound. As the crowd awaited the pitch, the robot malfunctioned. The ball shot out of SCooBY’s nose and hit the ground.
One of the Ionizers quickly grabbed the ball and put it back into the robot while Max worked on his computer. After a few moments, it was clear: SCooBY was not up to the task. To complete the mission, Max threw the ball across the plate, and the crowd applauded.
With robotics and engineering, failure is part of the process.
“These kids have had the chance to try something that doesn’t work, and they fix it, and they go back,” Eric said. “It gives them a certain confidence, not like a cocky confidence, but it gives them the confidence and capability not to be flinched by something that may go wrong.”
Justin Baratta, 13, a programmer, said the team is “not just for super smart people. Anyone can contribute. So if you’re interested, just reach out and you can be part of this.”
Dana added: “If you’re even slightly interested in robotics, like programming, manufacturing, electrical, even things like business and graphic design, we would love to come meet you. You can come to one of our meetings, and you can try us out, and you don’t have to commit to anything just yet, but we would love to meet you and tell you all what our team is about.”
For more information, check out The Ionizers on Instagram @theionizers10903. If a child in grades 8-12 is interested in joining the team, email Eric Schrock at evschrock@gmail.com. There is no cost to join, and everyone is welcome, no matter the skillset.