Hundreds Set For VEX Robotics Championship

The event runs January 7-8 at the University of Indianapolis.

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The growing Indianapolis VEX Robotics Championship begins Saturday. 180 teams of K-12 students will compete for scholarships, internships and the opportunity to advance to the state finals.

The competition is designed to spark STEM interest among students, and has grown from 36 teams to 180 over the last five years. In addition, a partnership between Indianapolis’ Office of Education Innovation and the TechPoint Foundation for Youth has raised more than $675,000 for a statewide initiative to bring robotics education programming to nearly 350 elementary schools.

Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett says events like this are crucial to the region’s talent pipeline, citing a CBRE study suggesting technology employment in Indianapolis has increased 28 percent over the last two years. Hogsett and former Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard, who now works with the University of Indianapolis, will take part in this year’s championship.

The event runs January 7-8 at the University of Indianapolis.