In early 2025, the Hawaiʻi VEX Robotics Regional Championships provided more than 1,000 students across the state with an opportunity to showcase their technical skills and a chance to advance to the World Championships in Dallas, Texas. The championships are managed by the Hawaiʻi Space Grant Consortium (HSGC) in the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa’s Hawaiʻi Institute of Geophysics and Planetology (HIGP) and supported by funding through UH Foundation.
A total of 111 teams competed in the VEX V5 Robotics Competition and the VEX IQ Robotics Competition Regional Championships, representing public and private schools on Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi Island and in Maui County, as well as club organizations and home teams.
VEX Robotics is an educational robotics program that inspires students to excel in STEM principles while encouraging creativity, teamwork, leadership and problem solving among groups.
“Robotics competitions foster these skills and prepare students to become future innovators and global problem-solvers, as well as increase their interest in pursuing STEM careers,” said Adria Fung, HSGC robotics education specialist.
VEX V5 Robotics Competition Championships
The VEX V5 Robotics Competition Championships featured high school and middle school teams at the Hawaiʻi Army National Guard in Kapolei on January 25 and 26. This year’s challenge, High Stakes, was a fast-paced game that pits alliances of two teams against another alliance, and requires robots to score rings on stakes, place mobile goals and climb at the end of the match. Robots have a period of autonomous play followed by driver-controlled play.
Advancing to the World Championships were Nānākuli High and Intermediate, Mililani Mechs Robotics, Waialua High and Intermediate and Waiākea Intermediate.
VEX IQ Robotics Competition Championships
The VEX IQ Robotics Competition Championships featured elementary and middle school teams at Pearl City High School on February 15 and 16. This year’s challenge, Rapid Relay, was a teamwork challenge game that required two teams to pass balls between robots, score balls through targets and clear switches. A new student role to this year’s game, the loader, gives students an opportunity to introduce balls directly onto the field, allowing for human-robot interaction.
Advancing to the World Championships were Mānoa Elementary School, Haleiwa Elementary School, Island Robotics and St. Louis School.
Due to double qualifications by teams in both competitions, the Robotics Education and Competition Foundation will select additional Hawaiʻi teams to advance to the national competition.
About Hawaiʻi Space Grant Consortium
HSGC offers remote and in-person training sessions and workshops for coaches, teachers and students, a robotics curriculum for STEM/robotics classes, and mentors teachers and students in robotics programs. HSGC and HIGP work to inspire and prepare students to enter STEM degree pathways and careers to promote public understanding of NASA’s goals and missions. HSGC and HIGP are housed in UH Mānoa’s School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology.
