Update! Update! Update!

Wow! Summer in Iowa is HOT! Hot! Hot! We hope everyone, robots included, are keeping cool and not over-heating.

Similar to Ken and the FTC Blog, FTC-Iowa also got a notice about this blog.

Ok, here's an update!

What have we been up to....

Green City Challenge

• Summer Camps: This summer we have been busy hosting a TON camps. Of our three LEGO Robotics Camps (VERY POPULAR!), two are now "In-The-Books".  (We used the Green City Challenge, which is pretty cool!) In addition to the LEGO Robotics, we've also had several camp focused on Renewable Energy and Sustainability and a camp about engineering/pharmacy and medicine. We have worked with over 100 children, and its great to see their excitement!
• Traveling Demo & Soccer Bots: With some huge help from some wonderful helpers (Ben B. & Darren Y.), we have put together a traveling FTC demo, called Soccer Bots. We have taken this demo to several county fairs, several schools, and several STEM Conference. Watch for it at the Iowa State Fair on Aug. 19/20 in Des Moines.

Preparing for FTC 2011/12 Season: We are finalizing the agenda for the FTC-Iowa Kick-Off (Save the Date: Sept. 10th), arranging for a series of workshops, and working

Soccer Bots

through the logistics of Qualifying Tournaments. This is going to be a great FTC Season!!


What to look forward to....

• Upcoming Events: Teams, be ready for several opportunities during the season, including the following events:

--Iowa State Fair (Aug. 19/20) Des Moines - Visit our booth in the Varied Industries Building.

--PTC Workshop (Aug. 27th) University of Iowa

--Season Kick-Off (Sept. 10th) Vinton-Shellsburg High School, Vinton

--Qualifier Tournament (Various dates & Locations)

--FTC-Iowa Championship (Feb. 25, 2012) University of Iowa.

• Qualifier Tournaments

As posted on May 7, 2011, FTC-Iowa is moving to a qualifying system in which team will need to compete and "qualify" prior to attending the FTC-Iowa Championship.

• Revamped Website

In September, 2011, be on the look-out for a  New & Improved FTC-Iowa Website.  The URL will be published at a later date.

And, don't forget....

• The Rockwell Collins Funding for FTC-Iowa teams is still OPEN! Check out information on the website at: https://sites.google.com/site/ftciowa/ The deadline is the end of August, 2011.
• E-Watt Program through FIRST!  A great way to get started with some team fundraising!