The members of Hathaway Brown's Upper School Robotics Team 2399, The Fighting Unicorns, made quite a name for themselves at the Pittsburgh FIRSTand Buckeye Regional FIRST Robotics Tournaments over Spring Break.
In addition to winning the coveted Team Spirit award in Pittsburgh on March 15, Team 2399 led all of the team mascots in a a competition-wide Harlem Shake. Amanda Merritt '16 was HB's featured dancer. Click here to watch the video.
At the Buckeye Regional Tournament at Cleveland State University March 28-30, Gracie Phillips '14 was one of just two students to be named a FIRST Dean's List Finalist. This prestigious designation netted Gracie a certificate and qualifies her to compete for the national title.
Gracie didn't know she had been nominated for the award and she was excited and honored to hear the program organizers reading aloud the essay written by her mentor Arkady Polinkovsky. In Arkady's words: "In addition to her work within the team, Grace has been an ambassador for the team to the rest of her school. She is always willing to talk to other students about the team and welcomes new members. Thanks in part to Grace, our team has experienced a 30% membership increase over the past two years. Grace also took the initiative to apply for a Google grant to obtain funds for a robotics camp for middle school girls that she will run this summer at school. Between her technical skills, team spirit, and leadership, she exemplifies the best of FIRST." (Read the full nomination essay here.)
Congratulations to the members of the HB FIRST Robotics Team 2399:
Nicole Trombetta Advisor
Jessie Adkins '13
Rebecca M Geisinger '13
Devon Kilroy '13 Head of Business Team
Lauren Dierker '14 Head of Programming Team
Sarah Dierker '14 Head of Mechanical Team
Allie Dumas '14
Gracie Phillips '14 Team Captain
Josie Strang '14
Chloe Biskind '15
Mackenzie B. Hridel '15
Jordan Purpura '15
Madi Ference '16
Francesca Ferri '16
Elise Leneghan '16
Amanda Merritt '16
Laura Starkman '16
Raina Washington '16
Special thanks to Technical Mentors Arkady Polinkovsky from Gearing Solutions, Inc., Christopher Dickey from Case Western Reserve University, and Tom Glem and Andrea Clark from Rockwell Automation, as well as HB faculty members James Allen and Lori Harris for their assistance throughout the season.