Kell Robotics wins major award, prizes, and money

[ebarker]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Ed Barker
The Kell High School Robotics Team
Kell High School
Marietta Georgia, 30066
678-463-3887 – cell phone
edbarker@kellrobotics.org

The Carlton J. Kell High School Robotics Team Earns
2010 SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Award

Marietta school is one of eight in the U.S. to win award; Kell Robotics will receive $10,000 prize

Marietta Ga., February, 25, 2010 - The Carlton J. Kell High School Robotics Team of Marietta, Ga., won an Environmental Excellence Award from SeaWorld/Busch Gardens. Kell High School is one of eight schools in the country to receive this prestigious honor. The team has been recognized for its work in applying the technology skills and knowledge gained through participation in FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) robotics program. The robotics team from Kell High School has designed a trash-collecting robot, which collects garbage from bodies of water such as lakes and rivers. The team will be awarded a $10,000 prize that will be applied toward continuing its innovative robotics work. A delegation from the team will be traveling, all-expense paid, to Busch Gardens in Tampa Bay, Fla., to attend a formal awards ceremony and receive the award check.

Representatives from 14 agencies judged this year’s Environmental Excellence Awards. The judging panel included representation from Conservation International, Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, The Izaak Walton League of America, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, National Geographic Society, National Science Teachers Association, National Wildlife Federation, The Nature Conservancy and World Wildlife Fund.

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To learn more about the SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Awards contact the EEA hotline at the numbers posted below:
SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Awards
407-363-2389
1-877-792-4332
http://www.seaworld.org/conservation-matters/eea


For more information about the Kell Robotics Team or about FIRST contact:
Ed Barker
Program Director
Kell Robotics
edbarker@kellrobotics.org
678-463-3887
www.kellrobotics.org

About SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Awards
Since 1993 the SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Environmental Excellence Awards have recognized the outstanding efforts of students and teachers across the country who are working at the grassroots level to protect and preserve the environment. Over the last 18 years, we've awarded $1.8 million to more than 150 schools in 35 U.S. states/territories. In 2004, the awards program was expanded to include community groups who are protecting planet Earth.

About The Kell High School Robotics Team

The Kell High School Robotics Team is an extracurricular activity at the Carlton J. Kell High School in Marietta Georgia. The high school is a Georgia Public school that is part of the Cobb County School District. This program complements the school’s missions by creating hands on opportunities to motivate and educate students.

Kell Robotics is not an advocacy society for robotics. The team’s mission is to create a culture where studying, participating, and achieving accomplishments in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) activities are celebrated.

Key focus areas include environmental sustainability, women in engineering, and the exhibition of the human imagination in applying science and engineering to solve the problems facing mankind.

To learn more about the Kell Robotics team, visit www.kellrobotics.org

[Kims Robot]

Wow FIRST Teams continue to amaze me....

[DonRotolo]

Bravo <applause>. This kind of recognition will inspire the team members for a lifetime.

Any what a cool way to do some fundraising!

[Jon236]

Congratulations! What a great example for other teams!

[Wildcat]

Originally Posted by Don Rotolo

Bravo <applause>.

see quote ^

[ebarker]

Thanks to all !!

That was a long long journey. Nearly 3 years in the making.

Maybe now we can get our companion "Corky the Robot Crab" coloring book for K-2 published.

Plus I got to update my signature !! whee !!

Ed

[RoboMom]

Wonderful project!

[dlavery]

Well done, Kell Robotics! When I first heard about this yesterday, I was extremely impressed. You guys continue to knock them out of the park.

-dave



.

[rsisk]

Suuuhweeeet!

[rspurlin]

Congratulations to Ed and all of the members and mentors of 1311. All of you continue to amaze.

Thank you.

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Congratulations everyone! A great award and some prize money to continue your great program. Who could ask for anything more? (to borrow a lyric)

[JaneYoung]

Way to go guys. I love seeing how all this hard work has culminated in a recognition of this caliber. Ed, I particularly want to thank you for keeping me in the loop with your team efforts. I always look forward to hearing about your latest adventures, ideas, and achievements. They are very special in this world where we see so much apathy, disconnect, and despair.

Keep setting that bar.

Jane

[Cynette]

This has me grinning from ear to ear!

Knowing how much effort you team spent on this project followed by the time spent on pins and needles after submitting for this award, I am so happy for you! Good show!

[ebarker]

Whats next ?

We are working on a presentation for FIRST Conferences.

The conference presentation is about how a team's mission (business plan) taps public perception of value to create support for the team's efforts.

It's a busy subject. It is an attempt to move public opinion toward FIRST and increase FIRST participant's ability to tap into public support.

It is a subject I spent years thinking about and very recently has been aided by drawing on resources such as Dutch Leonard at the Harvard Business School. Dutch lectures on the subject of performance management in the non-profit sectors.

We are planning on reducing the subject to something digestable and use this "Applied Robotics for Marine Sustainability" program and our participation in FIRST as a case study.

It should be in informative lecture for someone wanting to re-think how a team achieves better public support and sustainability. And to be very clear - we achieved sustainability before the SeaWorld Award. The award is gravy above and beyond the mainline business plan.

All this means that the student executive management staff and I will be camping out in Starbucks for weeks on end.

Of course this is assuming we are accepted to do the lecture.

Ed