This weekend, robotics teams from Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas will gather at Denham Springs High School to compete in the Dow Red Stick Rumble, an offseason FIRST (For the Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition and Festival.
DENHAM SPRINGS -- Robots are coming to Livingston Parish.
This weekend, robotics teams from Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas will gather at Denham Springs High School to compete in the Dow Red Stick Rumble, an offseason FIRST (For the Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition and Festival.
The competition, sponsored by Dow Chemical and the Livingston Parish School System, will be held in Denham Springs High’s Hornsby Gym, which will be transformed into “Planet Primus,” on Saturday, Aug. 24.
Teams will compete with their 120-pound robots to fill rockets and cargo ships while combating unpredictable terrain and weather patterns. Each high school team had six weeks to work with mentors and coaches from their community to design and build their robot.
This is the Red Stick Rumble’s first year in its new location and will spotlight the new Denham Springs High School STEM and Robotics Center, which opened this year.
“We’re excited to bring a whole new world of opportunity to our students through the STEM and Robotics Center,” said Michael Simmons, director of the center.
“The Red Stick Rumble is going to show the public what’s in store for our new robotics team and we’ll be able to take that excitement and use it to build programs that will prepare students for the 21st Century and beyond.”
The public is invited to the free event, where they’ll get the chance to witness giant robots battling it out for their chance to win the Red Stick Rumble trophy. They can also tour the pits and catch a glimpse of robot construction and repair.
Doors open to the public at 8 a.m., and the competition is scheduled to last until 5 p.m. Food will be provided by the DSHS Snack Bar. Louisiana teams from Baton Rouge, Hammond, Lafayette, New Orleans, and Slidell as well as teams from Texas and Mississippi will be in attendance.
FIRST Robotics is an international youth organization that operates the FIRST Robotics Competition, FIRST LEGO League, FIRST LEGO League Jr., and FIRST Tech Challenge competitions. Founded in 1989, its goal is to develop ways to inspire students in engineering and technology fields.
