BEST Robotics’ vision is to excite our nation's students about engineering, science and technology to unlock their imagination and discover their potential. This is accomplished through a series of robotics games based upon an annual theme with four teams competing at once in a series of three-minute, round-robin matches. In addition to the robotic competitions, teams compete for awards on their project summary notebooks, oral presentations, table displays, and spirit and sportsmanship.
Leveraging funds from the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, the Arkansas Science & Technology Authority has been able to fund four new robotics hubs. These hubs will join the three existing Arkansas BEST Robotics Hubs to expand BEST robotics to all areas of the state. Each hub can serve approximate 25 schools. These school teams can participate in the local hub competitions at no costs, with 10 teams advancing to the regional competition. It was through the direct support of the grant funds to the hubs that permitted these teams to become involved in the BEST Robotics program.
The BEST Robotics Program supports the goals and Arkansas ASSET Initiative to create new outreach methods and expand existing programs to increase the Arkansas science, engineering and technology student-pipeline with special emphasis on minorities and women to address the workforce issues of regional and national relevance. Programs such as this one assist students with building their critical thinking and collaborative skills which supports the Arkansas goal of creating a knowledge-based economy for a brighter future.
STEM education outreach is a priority of the Arkansas ASSET (Advancing & Supporting Science, Engineering & Technology) Initiative, a National Science Foundation EPSCoR RII grant awarded to the Arkansas Science & Technology Authority (Authority).