Annandale robotics team showcases robot "Hard Times," recounts regional successes and awards

At the Annandale Public School District meeting, the district hosted a robotics demonstration in which the team presented their robot named "Hard Times," described the game strategy and explained why the team prioritized reliability over attempting every possible scoring action.

Team presenter Speaker 5 described the robot's game pieces and mission and demonstrated basic functions. "This is a robot, called Hard Times," Speaker 5 said. He explained the team opted to focus on scoring two mid-level pieces rather than a single highest-value action because of time and design constraints.

Student driver Speaker 6 summarized the team's competition season: the Rocket City Regional in Alabama, where the team qualified eighth and captained alliance number 6, and the Granite City Regional in Saint Cloud, where the team captained alliance number 3 and finished second in qualifications. At state, the team received the Rising All Star award and the Dunwoody College Outstanding Engineering and Design Award. Speaker 6 noted the team has eight active students and estimated "about $8,500 or so into this robot" for the season.

Board members asked technical and strategy questions about weight (the robot meets a 135-pound limit at competition) and field challenges such as getting "beached" on the algae (large game piece). Speaker 6 emphasized robotics develops diverse skills beyond mechanics—fundraising, outreach, marketing and design—and praised students' teamwork.

The board congratulated the team on its season and awards. The presentation concluded with Speaker 1 thanking the students and moving on to the next agenda item.