U.S. First team returns home with ninth
Showing is GISD/E-Systems team's best in national competition
April 23, 1996     Greenville Herald Banner

Greenville High School's U.S. FIRST team returned home Monday night after making the school's best showing to date in national competition.

The students, engineers from their corporate sponsor E-Systems, parents and school sponsors have been in Lake Buena Vista Florida at Disney-World/Epcot Center since last Wednesday participating in the contest that drew teams from 74 schools across the United States.

During the event the local students earned a "premier team" designation — one of only five to do so — and served as ambassadors for the U.S. FIRST event, said sponsor and GHS teacher Vanessa Pope.

The team also earned finalist honors in the Chairman's Award Division which recognizes teams best exemplifying the spirit of the competition.  For the effort the team received a trophy created by U.S. First Founder Dean Kamen.

Members finished in the top 10 in competition, being the 66th team to be eliminated out of the 74 total, Pope said.

The academic contest calls for students and corporate sponsors to team up to create the most innovative robot from a standard set of materials.

The 30-foot high remote controlled robo-gladiators compete against one another by putting balls into goals.

The competition was started a number of years ago by Kamen to "reverse the decline in science and math performance among U.S. students and to give those subjects the kind of excitement found in sports.

The title went to Edison Technical High School of Rochester, N.Y.

As ambassadors, the Greenville group and their competing robot helped promote the competition "out front."

"We were right there where anyone in Epcot could come by and see the machine and get information about what U.S. FIRST is all about," Pope told The Herald Banner as the group waited to board their weather-delayed flight home on Monday.

Members of the GHS team were seniors Melissa Bosley, Laura Cooney, Erin Corley, John Eargle, Jesse Francis, Kim Green, Jeremy McClanahan, Amanda Qualls, Ben Thatcher and Casey Welch; juniors Melanie Eargle, Patrick Hodapp and Sarah McCrary; sophomores Jill Doshier, Brittany Maxwell, Emily Pope, Zach Scholz, Jon Thatcher and Nick Upatham, and freshman Tim Oliver.

Engineers from E-Systems were Tony Norman, Becton Pope, David Mimlitch, Robert Mimlitch III, John Hodapp and Robert Bruce.

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