April, 2025
By Gaby Semenov, Staff Reporter
If you had told me six months ago that I’d be considering Robotics as an extracurricular, I would have 1. Laughed in your face, 2. Laughed again, and then, 3. Called it “exclusively for nerds” and went on about my day. Now, even as I’m writing this, I consider the teams I’ve observed– the grit and mental strength, humor and jubilee– and wonder if I’ll regret not trying out soon enough. Chances are: likely.
For the past six months, I’ve found myself deeply nestled in the inner workings of one of KIPP Texas’ most accomplished robotics teams ever. In taking liberties to snoop around their space and learn about robotics as a program, I’ve realized how important it is to give the team their due justice and make something useful of it.
It started in August; me and my friends were bored on a Wednesday, lacking the usual business of a weekday amidst Volleyball season, and decided to pester Mister Martin, the teacher sponsor for KAC team 19412, better known as Archytas.
In typical Martin fashion, he responded dryly to our quips and bothersome presence, but he didn’t kick us out. This became routine and in the process of staying so often, observing the team in their habitat, procrastinating individual assignments, or dwelling on minor details, I became fascinated.
My previous assumptions about robotics were slowly breaking down, and with every question I had for Martin, strategist Alison, or manager Brandon, a growing interest in the team– and the sport as a whole, blossomed.
Suddenly I was volunteering for their first meet! While my volunteer duties did little to satiate my curiosity, I found myself tucked away in the far corner of the gym, watching the practice pit for a little longer than I needed to be. Robots, big and small, simple and complex, were coming in and out of the box with the team following suit.
That day, I saw teams lose pieces and break claws, I also saw robots that could glide and move at near-professional speed. The KAC Robotics teams were a flurry of moving parts– some builders here, and others there; historians keeping a close tab on their teammates and programmers collaborating to perfect their code for autonomous*. Other roles were just as critical, keeping the energy focused but laid back: reaching out to other schools and unaffiliated observers, ready to make a connection and network their team.
That day, I meddled just enough to be a part of the end-of-meet team circle where the teams shared their glows and grows. Brandon led the talk, going person by person to hear what every member had to say. I remember thinking; “What could have gone better? They just finished Meet One ranked third in the league!”
Following that experience, I decided to learn as much about robotics as possible– Archytas as my eyes, and Martin as my mentor.
In the next three months, I’d learned that throughout each competition season (August-February), different leagues had to learn one new game. Every game competition forced teams to engineer a new robot; one that could scoop and separate pieces, or slide across the platform with horizontal tires, for example.
The game introduced this season by FTC*, the league that KAC is registered in, began with the school’s annual Robotics 24-hour challenge where teams stay at school for a whole day to learn the game, brainstorm ideas, and begin constructing their robot. The 24-25 season hosted the Into the Deep challenge where teams had to construct a robot that could move quickly across a styrofoam base, extend a claw upwards of three feet, and hang by itself!
Despite early success with their prototype, Archytas had a roller coaster of an experience coming up with the most optimal robot to compete with. While builders Brandon, Joel, Enoc, and Theo had certain visions they wanted to fulfill, balancing the criteria of FTC’s manual and Martin’s more realistic approach kept smooth development a fantasy. At times, I would see one of them taking off full pieces of the robot with screwdrivers and drilling tools. Other times, I saw the robot looking competition-ready, only to learn that it had a programming issue that required reconfiguration! What always amazed me was the efficiency of the Builders’ work; no matter how many times they had disputes with Martin about the robot, or how severely their robot broke during a match, they were able to manage it.
A trait I admired in Archytas members throughout the 24-25 season was their determination to succeed, or– for lack of better words– die trying. On the non-technical side, I observed so many impressive feats accomplished because of the willpower of Fatima, Onyx, Maria, and Yaheli. Fatima, despite juggling her transition to being Managing Director of KAC Robotics and President of FBLA, constantly came out with high-quality social media posts, coordinated community events for the youth, and was able to extend Archytas’ publicity outside of our campus. Onyx was able to successfully create a portfolio of Archytas’ journey despite the uphill battle of managing all the other members through their individual journaling processes. And arguably the most tedious of all, Maria and Yaheli were successful in being the backbone of Archytas’ organization– through the thick and thin– keeping CAD material organized, helping set up district meets held on campus, and managing the team’s budget.
Every individual had something to offer– and unlike some other sports where a one-man show was enough to win– success was a whole group effort. To see this journey unfold was a trip, one that I’ll never forget, even if it means I have an hour’s worth of interview audio, pages worth of transcription, and three separate vendettas for emailed interviews, all of which I haven’t used.
In getting the opportunity to investigate the team in-depth, I learned that Archytas is a group of genuine students– genuine individuals– who give their all to be the best that they can be. They’re able to maintain an extremely laid-back, very unserious environment despite the stress that goes hand in hand with the extensive commitments of robotics.
I noticed this from being around other teams, but I think Archytas displayed it best. Being on a KAC Robotics team means being a part of a family—not everyone needs to get along, nor does everyone have to work towards the same agenda, but chemistry is key…everything else can come later.
Mister Martin has some responsibility in fostering such a fluid, entertaining group of kids with excellent work ethics, but much of it comes down to the individuals.
Whether it be because of the stress of commitment, constant proximity, or conflicting ideas, each member has most likely had a valid reason to stop caring…to give up, but they’ve all held their head high and stuck it through. They’ve done it tired, and they’ve done it defeated, and I believe that that’s what makes their identity as a team dedicated to compassion and community so fitting.
Archytas, while hardly recognized on this campus for being a successful “sports team”, has shown some of the greatest testaments to willpower that I’ve ever seen.
*Autonomous; a state in which a robot can operate independently of a driver– in this case, through coding done before the match.
*FTC; FIRST Tech Challenge, a robotics competition designed for high school students led by FIRST, a global non-profit organization dedicated to STEM.
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