Putnam students compete in Toyota Robotics Competition

ELEANOR, W.Va. -- The Putnam County students competed Thursday in the 2008 Toyota Robotics Competition.

The goal of the event was to help students bridge the gap between the classroom and industry and apply the skills they've learned to business or manufacturing.

Hurricane High was named as the overall school winners. Teams from Winfield High School and Teays Valley Christian also received awards. Trophies and scholarships were among the awards distributed for the students efforts.

Josh Fisher, 17, is a senior at Winfield High School and is currently in his second year of Putnam Career and Technical Center's drafting program. He said he really enjoyed participating in this year's competition because he was able to apply some of what he's learned in school.

"I'm really trying to get into engineering. It's a great area to study, a great start in life. It's a constant education," he said.

Another competitor, 16-year-old Chase Holroyd of Teays Valley Christian, said he's had a lot of fun with the entire experience. Meeting weekly and even during some school lunches, he and his team created four different robots for the competition.

Larry Adams of Toyota, a mentor for Teays Valley Christian, says he enjoyed his time working with the students throughout the process.

"It's nice to see them achieve something besides getting to the next level on a video game," Adams said. "Although they're dealing with LEGOS, they can use this information down the road."

Six schools competed in the competition to include Buffalo, Hurricane, Poca, and Winfield high schools, Putnam Career and Technical Center, and Teays Valley Christian. Each team consisted of five students and had to include both males and females. Volunteers and judges included representatives from the Academy of Careers and Technology, Charleston Job Corps, the city of Hurricane, Junior Achievement, Marshall University, United Way of Central West Virginia, West Virginia State University, West Virginia State Community and Technical College, and West Virginia University Health Sciences.