The VEX Robotics State Championship returned to ������Ƶ on February 21 and 22, bringing together 80 teams and 800 of Michigan’s top robotics students for a fast-paced, high-stakes competition that challenged their technical skills, teamwork, and problem-solving abilities.

“������Ƶ is proud to host the VEX Robotics State Championship because we know the students competing today are the engineers, coders, and industry leaders of tomorrow,” said Kim Shumaker, Director of Robotics Outreach & Robotics Center at ������Ƶ. “VEX students already think like Kettering students — they thrive on solving complex problems, working hands-on, and pushing their skills to the next level. That’s exactly what we do at Kettering.”

This premier robotics event was the culmination of a season of regional qualifiers, where top teams from across Michigan earned their place to compete for a chance to advance to the VEX World Championship. 

The VEX Robotics Competition challenged teams of high school students to design, build, and program robots to complete a specific game challenge. This year’s game, High Stakes, required teams to strategically maneuver their robots to score points by completing a series of technical and tactical objectives.

Teams competed in qualification matches Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, after which they were ranked based on their performance. The top-ranked teams then formed alliances and advanced to the elimination tournament, where they battled head-to-head in a bracket-style playoff leading to the championship match.

In addition to the main tournament, teams competed in the Skills Challenge, in which they attempted to score as many points as possible in driver-controlled and autonomous robot programming modes. Success in this event provided additional pathways to move on in competition. The following teams earned the ability to compete at the VEX World Championship this May in Texas:

• Team #39H “HNS” from Cranbrook Schools in Bloomfield Hills
• Team #244D “RoboDawgs: Detritus” from Grandville Community Education in Grandville
• Team #7760X “Airplane Mode” from Bloomfield Hills
• Team #39V “Volt” from Cranbrook Schools in Bloomfield Hills
• Team #248A “RoboDawgs: Starfall” from Grandville Robotics in Grandville
• Team #8626K “KACHIGGA” from Grand Rapids
• Team #36620A “Blue Crew” from Unity Christian High School in Hudsonville
• Team #39K “Rest in Pieces” from Cranbrook Schools in Bloomfield Hills
• Team #11591S “Siege” from Plainwell High School in Plainwell
• Team #3333W “Power of the Square” from Notre Dame Prep in Pontiac

Consumers Energy was the event’s title sponsor this year, reinforcing its commitment to investing in Michigan’s future STEM leaders.

“Consumers Energy knows our customers count on us every day for reliable energy, and we’re counting on the next generation of Michigan students to join us in our commitment to Michigan,” said Greg Salisbury, Consumers Energy’s vice president of electric grid design. “We’re excited to partner with ������Ƶ for the VEX championship and to cheer on student teams who are showing off their work in the High Stakes competition.”

The Association for Advancing Automation (A3) sponsored the Robot Safety Award. “A3 was honored to support the 2025 VEX Robotics State Championship at Kettering University. Youth robotics competitions play a crucial role in preparing students to become an integral part of the future workforce in Robotics, AI, Smart Manufacturing, and Automation. Through their schools, communities, and clubs, students collaborated as teams to design, build, test, and operate robots — developing essential skills that align with the needs of more than 1,300 A3 member companies worldwide,” Said Ritch Ramey, A3 Director of Education. “Beyond building robots, these students gained the ability to create intelligent systems that can see, feel, sense, and make autonomous decisions. These critical skills set them on a path to high-paying and rewarding careers in advanced technology fields. This competition was more than just an event; it was a launch pad for future innovators and industry leaders. I commend all participants for their dedication and hard work.”

Now, in the second year of a three-year hosting partnership, Kettering has continued to expand the impact of the championship. More than just a competition, the event introduced students to Kettering’s hands-on learning environment and industry-driven Co-op program, providing a direct connection between their passion for robotics and future career opportunities.

KUdos, the ������Ƶ VEX U team, claimed a Build Award at this season’s VEX Robotics World Championship, held in Dallas from April 25 to May 3, 2024. This prestigious accolade is awarded to teams that demonstrate exemplary robot construction with an emphasis on durability and meticulous attention to detail—qualities essential for withstanding the rigorous conditions of competition.

The key criteria of the Build Award are:

• Designing a robot with attention to safety and detail.
• Constructing a robot that is durable and robust under competition conditions.
• Demonstrating effective communication skills, teamwork, professionalism, and a student-centered ethos during the student interview process. 

Connor O'Keefe (Computer Science, ‘25), the KUdos software lead, strategy lead, and one of the team’s drivers, explains how experimentation and improvement factored into winning this award. 

“We made six robots throughout the season, and each time we made a new iteration, we learned from our competitors and previous builds to find ways to improve,” Connor said. “For example, I tested several types of bearings and shafts for our drivetrain until we found ones that met our quality standards for our final robots.”

Nathan Nguyen (Mechanical Engineering, ‘26), the lead designer, fabricator, driver, and build lead for the B-Section team, had prepared for this year’s VEX Robotics World Championship long before KUdos touched down in Dallas.

“Every part of our robot is tested for durability before heading to a competition. We ensure everything works before we even build the final robot,” Nguyen said. “We manufactured enough 3D printed & aluminum parts for VEX Worlds to build an entirely new robot in case anything broke, but honestly, we did not have to replace a single custom-manufactured part during the competition.”

KUdos continued to impress with their teamwork, building on their reputation for professionalism that earned them the Sportsmanship Award in 2023. At the VEX High School Robotics Competition, the team showcased their robots, “Chip” and “Dale,” at the Kettering booth, captivating many prospective high school students.

Looking ahead, KUdos is actively recruiting new members from across ������Ƶ, offering a valuable opportunity to engage in a team that values ingenuity and toughness in engineering. Their recognition for build quality at the World Championship marks a significant achievement for the team and inspires Kettering students who are passionate about robotics and engineering.

Katee Callicutt (Mechanical Engineering, 2027), KUdos' team captain, drive coach, and social media manager, explains how the Build Award is just the beginning of the team's success. "This victory is just a stepping stone for our future. We have significantly improved from last year and we plan on improving more and more each year," Callicutt said. "This year, we saw how much better our robot design and functionality was when we CAD the robot beforehand, so we will continue to do that in the future."

Those interested in joining KUdos can visit the team’s Instagram , or reach out via email at vexu@kettering.edu.

������Ƶ will host hundreds of high school students and their families the last weekend in February 2024 for the Consumers Energy and ������Ƶ Michigan VEX Robotics Competition (VRC) High School State Championship.

Teams start setting up Friday, Feb. 23, in the Connie and Jim John Recreation Center at ������Ƶ. The competition begins with opening ceremonies at 9 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 24, and concludes with an awards ceremony at 6:30 p.m. 

“������Ƶ is proud to host and sponsor this event,” said Kim Shumaker, Robotics Center and Robotics Outreach Director. “These students are outpacing their peers as a result of their involvement with the VEX robotics program. They have already developed problem-solving, critical-thinking, strategy and engineering skills as a pre-college student. We’re thrilled for Kettering to play a part in championing these students to pursue their passion for robotics.”

This is the third year ������Ƶ has hosted the VEX State Championship and its second in collaboration with Consumers Energy as the title sponsor.

“Consumers Energy is thrilled to join ������Ƶ to promote and support robotics teams from across Michigan this weekend,” said Greg Salisbury, Consumers Energy’s Vice President of Electric Distribution Engineering. “The VEX championship is important because it extends a pathway to STEM learning that’s exciting and compelling, charging up bright futures for so many students who will go on to power our company and all of Michigan.”

Nearly 400 students from 80 teams will participate in this year’s competition, called Over Under.

In Over Under, the field has 60 triballs, two goals and two sets of elevation bars with a barrier. Triballs score points in goals (5 points) or offensive zones (2 points). Robots move freely, and triballs can only be taken from opponent goals when both alliance robots are on the same side of the barrier ("double zoned.")

Robots aim to climb for points, with the highest climber earning 20 points and points stairstepping down to 15, 10 and 5 points for second, third and fourth place, respectively. Alliances scoring the most in the autonomous period gain an extra 8 points and can earn an Autonomous Win Point through specific actions. The alliance with the most points wins.

The top 20 to 30 teams will advance to the VEX Robotics World Championship in Dallas.

Kettering organizes VEX competitions in partnership with the non-profit Robotics Education and Competition (REC) Foundation, an educational foundation with a mission to increase student interest and involvement in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

“This season's game challenge rewards the teams that best collaborate with their partners during a match,” said Dan Mantz, a 1991 Kettering alumnus and Chief Executive Officer of the REC Foundation. “The REC Foundation works to prepare our students for the workforce by not only teaching technical skills such as engineering, design and coding but also emphasizing communication, critical thinking and teamwork skills.” 

������Ƶ has hosted VEX camps and workshops since 2015 and boasts its own VEX U team that debuted in the World Championship in 2023. Scholarships are available for students who are active competitors or mentors of VEX or other competitive robotics organizations. Students can earn up to $5,000 yearly (up to $25,000 over five years) in renewable scholarships.

“The REC Foundation values our partnership with ������Ƶ since our missions are perfectly aligned to prepare our students to be leaders in technology and business development,” Mantz said. “When students in our programs visit ������Ƶ, they experience the innovative and leading-edge campus learning centers and labs firsthand and understand that the Kettering programs will build on what they have learned through the VEX Robotics competition. We want these students to know that Kettering will help prepare them for the next phase of their education and career.”

The Community Foundation of Greater Flint will sponsor a skills field at the VEX Robotics Competition on Nov. 18, 2023 in ������Ƶ’s Campus Center Founders Room.

The sponsorship was made possible with a $2,000 grant the Foundation authorized to ������Ƶ. Of that, $1,000 will come from the William H. and Joyce R. Piper Family Fund.

“Throughout the year, our staff evaluates sponsorship requests based on their community impact and opportunities for brand recognition. Education and youth development are key strategies for grantmaking, so we are pleased to sponsor the VEX VRC Tournament this year,” said Sue Peters, Vice President of Community Impact at the Foundation.

The Foundation’s logo will appear on signage at the skills field, on the back of volunteers’ T-shirts and on the event registration listing.

In the skills challenge, teams have one minute to score as many points as possible in a match. These matches consist of Driving Skills and Autonomous Coding, and teams are ranked based on their combined score in both matches.

“The grant from the William H. and Joyce R. Piper Family Fund of the Community Foundation of Greater Flint enables the Robotics Center at ������Ƶ to provide a venue for VEX Robotics’ middle and high school student participants to compete with the robots they designed and built while demonstrating their skills,” said Kim Shumaker, Robotics Community Center and Robotics Outreach Director at ������Ƶ. “It is important to recognize the efforts of these talented students and expose them to a university campus where their skill set is highly valued.”

This year’s game, “Over Under,” is a head-to-head game in which two competing alliances, consisting of two teams, work to move acorn-shaped “Triballs” into their goals and offensive zones. Teams can also earn points at the end of the match when robots climb their respective Elevation Bars. Elevation points are awarded based on the tiers the robots reach on the bars relative to the other robots.

Thirty-six teams from across the state are expected to compete at the Nov. 18 event. Sponsorship opportunities are still available. For more information, email Shumaker at kshumaker@kettering.edu.

Since 2015, Kettering has hosted VEX camps and workshops. Students who are active competitors or mentors in VEX or other competitive robotics organizations can receive renewable scholarships for up to $5,000 yearly (up to $25,000 over five years).

In April, ������Ƶ was a Mission Sponsor at the VEX World Championships in Texas. The University’s VEX U team, KUdos, also competed and earned the Sportsmanship Award.