High school robotics team in Philadelphia needs help heading to world championship

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- The International Operatives of World Affairs robotics team at William Bodine High School in Philadelphia's Northern Liberties is making history for its school.

They've programmed their way to their first appearance after recently qualifying for the First Robotics Competition (FRC) World Championship.

Now, the rookie team needs help getting to Houston for the championship.

Currently, the team of 15 students is only sending 10 to Texas.

They'll be representing the Mid-Atlantic region, competing against 600 teams from around the globe.

This will be the team and their robot Sean's very first appearance.

Jade Armstrong, a member of the team, told Action News that a lot goes into building a robot.

"We first have to get the components, and then after that, there's the coding side," said Armstrong.

Then there's the drive team.

"The challenge would be to score as many rings or notes, and you only have about three minutes to make as many scores as possible," said team member Alston Huang.

Qualifying wasn't easy and physically getting there is another hurdle.

The team is still raising the $20,000 for the trip.

"This goes to transportation and housing, we especially need it for some robo parts in case parts break," said Sydney Le.

You can help the team meet their goal by donating to their GoFundMe.