The Pantherbots are pictured with executives and engineers from Lockheed Martin Lufkin
The Pantherbots wanted to show their appreciation for the years of support and dedication from Lockheed Martin by hosting a reception, presentations, and a tour of the workshop where the magic happens. Robotics teacher, Robyn Segrest, started off the presentation by thanking Lockheed’s employees and the fact that one of their employees, Jeffin James, was in Lufkin High School when the robotics team began. She then turned it over to the students who talked about their experiences.
A few of the students who spoke were junior Daniel Vallejo who spoke about the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics program and that 61,000 teams participate worldwide. Senior Kobe Kruse discussed the build season and how the team only has six weeks to design and complete the robot for the competition. Build season begins in January. Freshman Cassidy Knapp went over the community involvement piece of the robotics team from Innovation Night to a Hackathon sponsored by Microsoft.
Anthony Pittman, site director for Lockheed Martin Lufkin’s Operations, praised the Pantherbots for their influence in the school, community, and world. He wished them well on their upcoming competition.