Robotics is a large, STEM-based club here at Maggie Walker, but for students who aren’t members, it can be tricky to understand what the club does and what it aims to achieve. To assume robotics is just building robots would be incorrect—there are actually multiple departments within the club, including community engagement, safety, technical, and a vast number of building sub-teams. The team does a fair bit of robot-building, but is also involved with helping out the Richmond community inside and outside of Maggie Walker. 

Maggie Walker Robotics is an FRC (FIRST Robotics Competition) team. It is competitive and requires that the club design and create a robot well in order to win. However, to some departments, like that of community engagement, other missions of the club are just as important as the competition itself. Hudson Pitchfork (‘23), the club’s Chief Technical Officer, explains, “The goal of the robotics team is to promote STEM education and create a good environment to teach STEM and leadership. We provide a meaningful STEM experience for all members.” 

The Community Engagement department runs activities that help spread STEM education in the Richmond area. For example, robotics demonstrations are organized for local elementary and middle schools. Moreover, the department also focuses on organizing legislative advocacy efforts. Recently, some club members took a trip to the Virginia General Assembly to speak in support of a STEM education bill. Owen McDonald (‘23), the Lead Safety Manager for Robotics, notes the importance of the bill, stating, “Robotics is currently working on advocating for Virginia SB806, which would give funding to schools with underrepresented students to create robotics competition teams to expand the ability for Richmond students—and students across the commonwealth—to benefit from the experience of working on a robotics competition team.” Last year, along these lines of advocacy, the team also partnered with the International Rescue Committee to send 50 STEM Kits to recently-resettled Afghan refugees in Richmond. 

March 4th is the date of the club’s first competition of the season. All hands are on deck to ensure a win, but lobbying for Virginia SB806 and spreading a love for STEM throughout the city will undoubtedly also continue. In the eyes of the team, it is of the utmost importance that there will be a next generation of kids to recruit for FRC.

Robotics is not all about work, however; there is also an important social and community aspect. “I like that it provides a social outlet that I did not really have before. It gives me something to do with myself,” Pitchford said. McDonald also emphasizes the environment and applicability of the club, saying, “Robotics allows for anyone with pretty much any interest to have an opportunity to use their skills and hobbies and hone them in an environment that is welcoming but allows for competition and improvement. No matter what you like to do, there is a way for the robotics team to help you improve and develop your skills in a real-world, applicable way.”