Tampa – Nearly 1000 students from around Tampa Bay and Florida will descend on the University of South Florida Yuengling Center October 12 & 13 for the 7th annual ROBOTICON Tampa Bay K-12 STEAM Showcase. This high energy, gear gnashing event, which is free and open to the public, showcases the power of hands on, mentor driven STEAM education and what youth guided by adult mentors can accomplish. The event runs from 10am to 5 pm Saturday and Sunday. ROBOTICON 2019 is a Manufacturing Day event
With support from the USF College of Engineering, Hillsborough County, Lockheed Martin, USF Connect and the Florida High Tech Corridor, USF Research and Innovation, Frontier, SOFWERX, SourceToad , and other fine community organizations, ROBOTICON Tampa Bay provides students and guests an opportunity to enjoy a full scale FIRST Robotics Competition event featuring high school student built robot that weigh up to 120 lbs., as well as FIRST Tech Challenge (7th to 12th grade teams) , and FIRST LEGO League (4th to 8th grade teams) scrimmages and practice games, and a FIRST LEGO League Jr. Expo for our youngest roboticists, ages 6 to 9.
This year, ROBOTICON is Star Wars themed! Keep your eye out for R2D2, the occasional Stormtrooper and a few intergalactic visitors. There will also be a USF College of Engineering Expo, and an Industry Showcase, in partnership with Synapse, showcasing commercial and industrial science, technology and academic exhibits. Guests will also be able to tour Team Pits to see team members working on their robots and have a chance to talk to students, explore hands-on engineering exhibits and STEAM demos, and learn about the Tampa Bay Advanced Manufacturing & Robotics Center (AMRoC) developed by FCDI at University Mall, as well as about technical, industrial, and science career and college opportunities.
The mission of ROBOTICON is to increase public awareness of and engagement in the power of hands on, mentor driven youth engineering and robotics programs like FIRST, and to provide participating youth with a low stress, high-quality competitive event with opportunities for skill building, networking, and college and career readiness experiences. Special thanks to Florida FIRST Alumni, ROBOT League of Tampa and West Florida Robotics for FIRST program support. . Individuals and organizations interested in being part of the event as sponsors, donors, or exhibitors, or wanting to secure free event tickets, are invited to visit ROBOTICON.net to learn more.
About The Foundation for Community Driven Innovation
The Foundation for Community Driven Innovation (FCDI) is a 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting academic achievement, economic development and the spirit of innovation through inspiring programs, active learning and exciting, innovative projects. We do this by facilitating fiscal sponsorship for youth robotics teams, and by supporting exciting hands on learning and living events like Gulf Coast MakerCon, Tampa Bay’s annual maker festival, and ROBOTICON Tampa Bay, an annual youth robotics showcase event. FCDI is also the founder of Tampa Bay’s only public Fab Lab, the Advanced Manufacturing and Robotics Center (AMRoC) at University Mall. Visit FFCDI.org for more information.