The Windsor High School library hosts a variety of events, but the most prevalent organization, as seen by the large ‘arena’ by the computers, is the Student Robotics Club. Members of the club can be seen working on their robot(s) throughout the day. The team has great skill in teamwork and cooperation, but one student stood out.

Junior Madison Perry was awarded the 2017 Dean’s List Finalist for the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC). The title is awarded to high school students who excel in engineering, team building and robotics. The most significant factor of the award, however, is the leadership aspect.

FIRST, or For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, is a non-profit charity corporation that operates worldwide, and aims to inspire young scientists in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) field. The organization holds competitions specializing in robotics and engineering for all ages, ranging from kindergarten to college-level, in which thousands of schools participate in—Windsor included.

Librarian Rebecca Zwetow mentors the robotics team, and was the one to nominate Perry for the award.

“She is really good,” Zwetow said. “There is no other way I can say that. The biggest thing she did, in my opinion, was to make a ‘failure board,’ which kept track of failures. Initially it did sound bad, but it really helped everyone learn from their failures and mistakes. She was always tinkering with components; she is very devoted to the team. We are very excited.”

Perry was pleased with the award. 

“It’s great. This is an opportunity that will prove useful for many years,” Perry said.

The Dean’s List Finalist for the FTC is only given to 5 people in Missouri, and 148 in the world. After faculty nomination, contestants go through an interview process, which is where the award givers filter through the students to find the competitors who exhibit the qualities of a great leader. The finalists will then attend a national convention in St. Louis on April 28 for robotics with people around the globe.

“I can’t wait,” Perry said. “I’m stoked.”