CSM’s Robotics Team ~ the Talons ~ Are Back in Business at National, Remote Skills Tournament

CSM’s Robotics Team ~ the Talons ~ Are Back in Business at National, Remote Skills Tournament

The College of Southern Maryland (CSM) competitive robotics team – the Talons – are back in skill-building business today participating in the University of Nebraska – Lincoln Inaugural Remote Skills Event. The Talons are one of 13 colleges in the national tournament which is Nebraska’s first remote, skills-only VEX U event, hosted by UNL’s VEX U team.

In 2019, the Talons placed 11th in the world in their division, fifth in the United States, and were one of only three U.S. community colleges to earn a spot at the VEX U World Robotics Championship before claiming global recognition.

The Talons are staged for today’s event at CSM’s Velocity Center in Indian Head. The team is participating a series of virtual matches played on a square field where they maneuver their robots to place balls in goals and connecting rows across the field.

The international and national VEX U competitions and skill events are sponsored by the Robotics Education and Competition (REC) Foundation, whose mission is to increase student interest and involvement in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Participating teams build robots to compete in a series of challenges through VEX U that involve maneuvering game elements and completing tasks. Each year, VEX U creates a new games to challenges students to design robots to score the most points against their opponents. Because each game is different, students must critically think through new design iterations and strategies as they master the game.