DECATUR COUNTY, GA — A 12-student robotics team from Bainbridge High School is heading to Houston, Texas, to compete on one of the biggest stages in robotics.
WATCH FULL REPORT BELOW:
The team, made up mostly of first-year competitors and female students, will face teams from around the world at the 2026 FIRST Championship.
The students spent months building, testing, and practicing with their robot, named Kit Kat. The team learned through trial and error, using each setback to improve their design.
Their robotics coach, Kyle Kelley, says the opportunity is the result of a season built on persistence, problem-solving, and growth.
"They made it to Worlds as a rookie team from rural southwest Georgia, an hour away from the nearest robotics team that we have to look up to, right? And they made it to Worlds their first year. Rookie team, mostly females, and we made it to Worlds. Like, they've achieved. No matter what our performance is on the stage at Worlds, they made it there," Kelley said.
The FIRST Championship brings together 50,000 attendees, 19,000 students, and over 1,000 teams from more than 66 countries.
Ninth-grader Joel Aguayo says making it this far is already a win for the team.
"A team this small making it into Worlds, it's a big achievement because we tried our best to make it, and all of our effort paid off. We have, in my opinion, already succeeded because we're making it into Worlds as a rookie team. It's our first year, and our first year has probably been the best year we've had," Aguayo said.
More students are being encouraged to explore science, technology, engineering, and math fields as demand for skilled workers rises. In 2025, over 90,000 students pursued STEM education in colleges across Georgia, according to the Georgia Student Finance Commission.
Aside from competing, Aguayo is excited about the people he will meet.
"The experience is the fun part. Maybe not competing, but the experience is fun. You meet new people from all around the state, and in this case, next week we're going to meet them from all around the world, like Germany, Spain, Brazil, all around the world, so it's definitely the experience that I'm looking forward to," Aguayo said.
As the students prepare for their first world championship, they say the season has already exceeded their expectations.
The team is still working to raise money for the trip. The community has raised $10,000 out of the $25,000 needed for the trip. They are also accepting donations for non-perishable breakfast items, paper products, snacks, and water.
Here are ways to give:
Checks made payable to Bainbridge High School earmarked Robotics Team:
Online directly to Robotics Team click here
Paypal @danabryant343 (note Robotics team)
Venmo @Dana-Byant-11 (note Robotics team)
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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