Scott County Central School District’s Board of Education President Robert Cook watches as SCC robotics students demonstrate their skills Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022, at Scott County Central High School in rural Sikeston. Pictured are, from left: Cook, Asher Britt, Elliana Britt and Kierstin Banks.

Leonna Heuring/Standard Democrat

SIKESTON — When Scott County Central Board President Robert Cook proposed six years ago the district start a robotics club, he looked to preK-12 art teacher Cristy Crites to get the ball rolling.

Today, Cook said he had no idea Crites would hit the ground running and make the program what it is.

“These skills (used in robotics) are similar to what we use at work,” said Cook, who works for Bayer in Matthews, Missouri. “I was wanting to make sure our students had those skills. With robotics, we opened up a spot for that person who didn’t excel or who didn’t want to play sports. I thought this was good technology. I came to Ms. Crites with it — and she doesn’t get near enough credit. She decided to do it, and she hit the ground running with it.”

Crites recalled Cook asking her to start the robotics team.

“He said he didn’t care if we played or not, just try it,” Crites said. “I don’t do anything halfway, and I take my job very seriously, so here we are six years later.”

Since then, Crites helped start the after school Youth Coding League, and a robotics class has been added to the high school’s daily curriculum.

Both of Crites’ sons are also mentors to the Steampunks.

“My oldest son is a software developer and has helped them with coding from the beginning,” Crites said. “We had no idea how to code or program a robot and our curriculum didn’t offer it. Now that we have experienced coders from the Youth Coding League, they rarely reach out for his help.”

As exhausting as it is, the robotics program is such a valuable experience for her students, Crites said.

On Tuesday, members of Scott Central’s robotics club, which is named the Steampunks, said they were prepared to show off their skills and the two robots — Hyde and Havik — they’ve completed, a competition Saturday in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

“We have two teams, and we each have our own robot,” said junior Kierstin Banks.

SCC robotics team receives $1,000 grant from Bayer Fund

Thursday, February 3, 2022

Standard Democrat

Bayer Fund, a philanthropic arm of Bayer, recently awarded a one-time $1,000-grant to Scott County Central High School’s robotics team, Steampunks, Team 11965, to support their participation in the FIRST Robotics program. Pictured are from left: Asher Britt, 10th grade; Kierstin Banks, 11th grade; Robert Cook, Bayer representative; Bailey Harper, seventh grade; and Elliana Britt, eighth grade.

Leonna Heuring/Standard Democrat

SIKESTON — Students who participate on Scott County Central High School’s robotics team received grant funding for their robotics team as they work to enhance their skills in science and engineering.

Bayer Fund, Bayer Fund, a philanthropic arm of Bayer, recently awarded a one-time $1,000-grant to Scott County Central High School’s robotics team, Steampunks, Team 11965, to support their participation in the FIRST Robotics program.

“Scott County Centrals’ Steampunks are grateful for this award,” said Cristy Crites, who serves as SCC High School’s Robotics, FIRST Robotics Coach/Sponsor, Youth Coding League Sponsor and Steam Lab Facilitator. “Running a robotics program is expensive. These funds will offset expenses for items such as team T-shirts, robot parts, computers and equipment, competition fees, etc.”

As the coach, Crites applies for this grant each year and the SCC team hosts various fundraisers such as a car show, craft show, pork butt sales, and they work the concession stand at basketball games throughout the year.

The Steampunks will use the grant to participate in FIRST Robotics educational programs and competitions. FIRST enables teams of students to compete with others in building, designing and programming their own robots to perform pre-assigned tasks, giving students a chance to get invovledw ithe real-world engineering.

“The FIRST Robotics program helps provide the necessary skills for young students to become STEM (science, tehcnology, engineering and math) leaders,” said A Mitchell, president of Bayer Fund. “This program not only inspires innovation but provides life capabilities such as communication and self-confidence. Bayer Fund is proud to provide grants to student teams to encourage their development into future scientists, engineers and computer programmers.”

Bayer Fund’s sponsorship of FIRST Robotics teams continues the nonprofit’s intentional support of programs that improve STEM education. Over the past five yeasrs, Bayer Fund has contributed to over $37 million to STEM outreach efforts.

“This is the sixth year we’ve had a robotics program at Scott County Central,” Crites said. “Last year we added a second team. We also added a robotics class to our daily curriculum. Our teams and class are made up of students in grades 7-12. Students work on robot engineering and design, engineering binder and team portfolio as well as practice their game strategies on a playing field.”

Teams of two are paired up with another team to play a game against two others teams of two while using their robots to work together and score points, she explained.

“We’re just trying, basically, solve a problem,” Banks said. “That’s what it is: solving problems, moving blocks, and finding a different way to do it.”

The goal between the two teams that align that time is to come up with a game plan, Banks said. They find ways to officially fix the issue and find ways of scoring points, she said.

“It’s communicating with your alliance partner and making sure whatever happens, you guys are doing what you can to get the most points out of it all,” Banks said.

Teams are allowed to help one another out and it’s even encouraged.

“One of the robotics’ core values is always helping anyone in need, not beating the brains out of the team — just always coming together and working and having a team environment for everyone and helping them out,” said Asher Britt, a sophomore.

Banks said it’s “gracious professionalism,” as she pointed to a sign featuring the phrase on the wall in the robotics/STEAM room at the high school.

“That’s one of the main quotes and mottos that they go by, and seeing that you can be on a team with someone one time and then play against them the next game, it’s important to make good relationships and good alliances,” Banks said. “And they’ve been really welcoming. (At competitions) Some people (from other teams) have come over and talked to us and helped us. We’ve actually helped a few teams, too. We’ve helped our sister team a lot.

Though we’re on different teams, we help because we use the same tools, and it’s a two-way street.”

Britt noted every year a game design committee releases a new game for all of the robotics clubs to learn and play.

“Every year, they do a game launch in September. and everyone is watching for the game release, Banks said. “Some meet to find out together what the game reveal is.

She continued: “Everyone is anxiously waiting, and as soon as they launch it, we all just get to work, starting with game designs, starting to draw things, starting to come up with a robot and how you’re going to score.”

From the game launch, teams start putting out more information like ideas and publicizing that their working on their robots, Banks said.

“It’s really interesting and fun just to see you’re not the only anxious. There’s a world of people out there doing the same thing you’re doing. It’s really cool,” Banks said.

Over the years, SCC added a Youth Coding League at the Junior High level and bring up the best coders to “intern” with the robotics club so they can see what it’s like to be on the robotics team, Banks said.

Elliana Britt, an eighth grader at SCC, Britt and seventh grader Bailey Harper are top coders in SCC’s YCL and will be competing Saturday.

Britt said she’s excited about Saturday’s competition.

The first year that I came to robotics I was in sixth grade; I was an intern so I wasn’t necessarily a full team member so I couldn’t do anything and then the next year because of COVID, it was all virtual. And this year, I’m really excited because I’m a full team member and this is my first year qualifying for competitions.”

Throughout the year, SCC’s robotics club also does fundraisers and seeks sponsors to help pay for robot parts and registration fees, the teens said.

“Our fundraising is getting bigger and bigger, which is the goal,” Banks said. “The better we get, the more experience we get. It’s fun learning, going and growing.”

Robotics is bringing a lot of positive, academic attention to SCC schools.

“It’s about communicating and working together,” Banks said. “With robots you never know what gets messed up. … It’s about tweaking, keep going and it’s always about problem solving, finding your way around the issue.”

In the meantime, Cook said he and the community are learning more and more about the robotics program every year.

“When I brought this to Ms. Crites, I didn’t know all of this was going to develop,” Cook said. “We were just going to get students used to working with robotics so they could take this to the industry or whatever they decided to do in life. This program is blooming a lot more than I ever thought it would.”