Davisville Middle School in North Kingstown, RI buzzed with excitement the first weekend of March as young engineers from across Rhode Island competed in the VEX IQ "Rapid Relay" State Championship. Moses Brown’s team was among the standout performers and garnered multiple awards and accolades for their innovation, teamwork, and dedication.

The event saw students showcasing their robotic prowess requiring teams to design, build, and program robots to complete complex tasks. MB’s teams impressed with their well-prepared notebooks, thoughtful robot designs, and exceptional collaborative spirit.

"You all performed so well!" said Dave Wasser, the team coach, in comments to the team. "It was very clear how hard you have worked this year, and how seriously you have devoted yourselves to making constant improvements. We could see it in the ways that you worked with each other and with other teams; in the way that you solved problems with respect for teammates and others; in the quality of your conversations with judges and the deep understanding you demonstrated of how to behave and work as a team; and in the innovative robot designs and match strategies that you brought to the event."

Teams 1784A and 1784C were awarded Judges Awards, recognizing their meticulous notebooks, innovative robot designs, and outstanding teamwork. Team 1784D achieved an impressive feat, advancing to the championship finals and securing second place in the Teamwork Challenge. This accomplishment was particularly noteworthy as many team members were first-year robotics participants.

"For many of you, this is your first year on the robotics team! We can't wait to see how you take what you've learned into the 2025-26 season," Dave said to the team.

The youngest team, 1784B, consisting of two fifth-grade students, also demonstrated exceptional partnership and strategic thinking, narrowly missing the finals. "You came one spot away from making it to the finals, which is hugely impressive. But what's more impressive is how effective you were as partners in all of your alliances with other teams. You had a simple robot; but you learned what it could do, and you worked closely together to develop yourselves into an effective team. No doubt you'll be chasing bigger dreams next year!" the coach stated.

The success of these students underscores the importance and power of teamwork and showcases a promising future for these budding innovators.