Members of the Astro Vikings robotics program presented accomplishments and a funding request at the March 19 board meeting, asking the district to excuse competition travel as student activity and to consider stipends for after‑school STEM mentorship programs.

A student representative said the program reached thousands of people through mentoring, outreach events and camps and that teams won awards at recent competitions, including an Inspire Award at state competition and a Mentor/Motivate award at an Albuquerque event. The team said one FLL team qualified for the First Lego League world championship and that their FTC team had received state recognition.

The group asked the board to designate travel for students attending world competitions as student activity so attendance would not be negatively affected. They said the immediate funding target to reach world championship is $75,000, of which $55,000 would cover two teams' travel; they reported about $17,800 raised to date and listed a series of fundraisers planned through April.

The presentation also requested district support for stipends for after‑school STEM mentors to expand robotics programs across APS schools; the team said lack of after‑school funding limited outreach this year. The board thanked the team for their outreach and recognized their competitive achievements; the board did not take a formal vote on the request but staff said travel approvals would follow the usual activity‑trip process when teams qualify.