Last year 22 Oak Park students participated in this worldwide program; this year 55 kids are in on the excitement of this after-school club. Students are grouped into teams which design, build and program robots, and then compete with other teams of students in robot games.
VEX Robotics unlocks the power of imagination while increasing knowledge of physics, engineering, and computer programming. Students also develop life skills such as teamwork, persistence, and selfconfidence as they take their robots from concept to reality.
VEX Robotics coordinator Mark Pickus, who leads the Brooks program with Pat Williams says, “I get excited seeing students express their creativity in their designs and struggle to make them work. I like helping but I also like to challenge them to figure it out themselves.” Students agree. As one young designer put it, “You have in your mind what you want to make, and its fun
to see it actually work.”
The VEX Robotics program is fully funded by the Oak Park Education Foundation, in partnership with District 97 schools.
