The Deadbolts, #10980
In my senior year, I founded The Deadbolts, FIRST Robotics Competition team #10980. I formed a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and raised $65,000 through community outreach and corporate grants to support the new program.
The team brought together students to design, build, and program a competition robot. Alongside the technical work, I led fundraising and sponsor relationships, with support from BAE Systems, NASA, Medtronic, and the Gene Haas Foundation. We expanded STEM access in Boulder and grew team diversity by 40%.
In our rookie season, we earned the Rising All-Star Award at the Arizona North Regional and the Rookie All Star Award at the Green Country Regional. We advanced to the 2026 FIRST Championship in Houston and competed in the Galileo Division.
The Black Knights, #2036
Before founding The Deadbolts, I spent three seasons on team #2036, The Black Knights. I started as a programmer and Teleop Lead, developing driver-controlled movements and autonomous motion sequences in Java.
As a sophomore, I became the youngest Programming Captain in the team’s history. I led software development for autonomous and tele-operated robot functions and helped expand the team’s community outreach.
As Team Captain in my junior year, I led 45 members from six schools across programming, design, and build teams. I managed budgets and timelines, raised $35,000 in sponsor funding, and represented the team to sponsors and judges. I also directed out-of-state competition travel.
Outreach and leadership
Across the two programs, I raised $100,000 in funding. The roles grew from implementing robot behavior to coordinating people, resources, and a full competition season.
That work also extended beyond competition. I volunteered at STEM fairs and robotics events and mentored elementary and middle school students. Building access to robotics was part of building the teams themselves.