The Barrington High School RoboEagles began their quest for a robotics state championship on Nov. 10.

That gave them about four months to build their robot, complete all the necessary coding and programming, and handle all the other challenges that accompany competing in the state tournament.

It also placed the local robotics team about two months behind most of their competition, as the vast majority of high school robotics teams in Rhode Island began meeting in late August or early September. 

And the RoboEagles had another challenge: They did not have a coach.

The teacher who had served as the BHS robotics coach in the past had stepped down, and an ensuing search to find someone else with robotics expertise to lead the team came up empty. 

With the season hanging in the balance, a team member’s parent, Michael Robbins, stepped up and offered to coach. Mr. Robbins readily admits “I don’t anything about robotics,” but he knows very well how important robotics is to his son, Simon, and the other members of the team. 

“It felt very silly that we couldn’t get an adult to stand there so they can get this done,” Mr. Robbins said during a recent interview. 

The first-year coach quickly learned that the RoboEagles faced yet another obstacle — funding. The team needed to replace nearly all of the equipment required to compete, but they had very limited funding from the school department and scarce fund-raising opportunities. The robotics team, like other clubs at BHS, does not receive much money from the school. There is a $2,000 stipend for the coach and the school also pays the league registration and competition entrance fees. 

Mr. Robbins donated his entire stipend to the team; they used the money to purchase some of the equipment needed for the competitions. He said the team probably needs another $600 to $800 for additional equipment.

In the past, the team has raised money with a special STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math) event at the school, but health and safety protocols barred them from holding the event this year or last. 

Despite all the challenges, the RoboEagles are still working hard to prepare for the upcoming state tournament, which will be held at New England Tech on March 5.

“I feel like we’ve worked pretty fast,” Mr. Robbins said, adding that he has been very impressed with the team’s determined approach.

He said the group meets to practice two times each week, and occasionally team members bring some of the equipment home. Once they arrive for practices, the RoboEagles team members split up into separate work groups. Mr. Robbins said there is one group that handles the coding, another that works on the robot, and a third that focuses on making things with the 3-D printers. 

“They’re there for a purpose,” he said. “They’re not messing around.

“They’re very self-motivated. Their problem-solving is impressive.”

Mr. Robbins said he was not sure what to expect in his first year of coaching the robotics team. After a few practices, he realized his work would not be too demanding — he said the team members are very self-sufficient.

On a few occasions, Mr. Robbins has tried to offer suggestions or ideas, but added “They’ve usually got it figured out.”

Prepping for states

The RoboEagles’ road to the state tournament has had a few bumps. Initially, it appeared that there would not be a state tournament in Rhode Island — local teams would need to compete in the Massachusetts tournament, which was scheduled for mid-January.

Mr. Robbins said that would have presented a very difficult challenge for the RoboEagles, who started the season later than most teams. 

Organizers later decided to hold a state tournament in Rhode Island and planned a qualifier for Feb. 12. More recently, the qualifier was canceled and all teams were invited to the state tournament. 

Mr. Robbins said states will be held in-person, although spectators cannot attend. The event will be shared on Twitch. 

RoboEagles roster

This year’s BHS robotics team members: 

Heider Al-Chalabi

Nathan Azevedo

Ethan Baker

Samuel Barber   

Sam Bishop

Jason Buka

Michael Cancilliere

Nicholas Clark

Owen Clark

Matthew Clegg

Aidan Cummings

Jacob Dickstein

Scott Jiang

Ali Lo

Simon Robbins (Co-captain)

Raisa Saoda (Co-Captain)