Hardeeville robotics team heads to World Championship

A robotics team from Royal Live Oaks Academy Charter School in Hardeeville received high honors in the South Carolina Vex State Competition’s middle school division Saturday.

The Full Metal Robotics team, new this year, won second place in the programming and driver skills competition and received the State Championship Judge’s Award, an honor presented for special recognition of effort and perseverance.

The team also won first place in the qualifying rounds and was selected as one of five teams to represent the state in the World Championship, which will be held April 20 to 23.

The students began work in October with a relatively simple robot, coach Ryan Floyd said in a news release. It has competed five times since December, according to a Vex database.

“They never gave up. They worked every day after school, they worked weekends, and they even worked during free time during the school day,” Floyd said.

Floyd referenced the struggles faced by Jasper County students in his news release.

Royal Live Oaks Academy, charted by the S.C. Charter School District, had a poverty index of 82 percent in 2015 and was rated below average in 2014, the last year the S.C. Department of Education included ratings on its annual report cards. The Jasper County School District is even poorer, with a poverty index of 88.5 percent in 2015 and an at-risk overall rating in 2014.

“It just goes to show you, it doesn’t matter where you come from or how much funding your team has,” Floyd said. “When students are given a glimpse of their capabilities, they are capable of doing inspiring work.”

The team will join 450 others facing off in the World Championship, including groups from all 50 states and more than a dozen countries. The championship will be held in Louisville.

Several Beaufort County robotics teams also competed Saturday.

The Cougars from Lady’s Island Middle School finished 21st in the qualifying rounds.

The Techneeks of Hilton Head Island Middle School finished 35th.

The Cougars Apprentices, also of Lady’s Island Middle, finished 37th.

The Complex Vex Kids from Bluffton Middle School finished 38th.

For information on supporting the team, call 843-784-2630.

This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 12:24 PM with the headline "Hardeeville robotics team heads to World Championship."