South Technical High Students Receive Boeing Grant for Electronics, Robotics Engineering

The electronics and robotics engineering program at South Technical High School has received a grant from Boeing Co. that will cover the entry fee for a national student robotics competition.

This is the fourth consecutive year that Boeing has provided funding to support South Tech’s team in the national FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics competition. The entry fee is typically $6,000 to $7,000. The grant from Boeing will allow the team to focus their funds on creating their competition robot. 

The FIRST Robotics competition offers students hands-on experience in developing the concept, design and prototype of a robot, as well as problem solving and working as a team to maximize creativity and effective design. Matt Rola teaches the electronics and robotics engineering program at South Tech, and Boeing engineer Mark Landrum serves as the team’s advisor.

The regional FIRST Robotics competition will be held in late March on the campus of St. Louis University.

Special School District of St. Louis County operates two technical high schools that serve about 2,000 students enrolled in more than 30 programs in a wide range of technical areas. The programs are open to 10th- through 12th-grade students from St. Louis County.