THS JROTC Robotics Team returns home with “The Create Award”

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Tafuna High School's Army JROTC Toa Robotics Team made history as the first team from American Samoa to compete in the World VEX Robotics World Championship, JROTC’s national robotics competition.

And, the team's outstanding performance over the three-day event earned them the Create Award, one of the eleven awards in the Judges Award category.

The Judges Award is presented to a team that the judges determine is deserving of special recognition. Teams were evaluated based on criteria such as special attributes, exemplary effort and perseverance at the event, or accomplishments throughout the season that may not fit under existing awards but are nonetheless deserving of special recognition.

The Create Award that the THS Army JROTC Toa Robotics Team received is presented to the team whose robot design incorporates a creative engineering solution to the design challenges of the season's game.

The criteria for the Create Award include a well-crafted, unique design solution demonstrating creative thinking, a highly creative design process and methodology, and a commitment to ambitious and creative approaches to solving the game challenge.

Led by Team Captain c/MAJ Isalei Liaiga and Co-Captain c/CSM Charles Tauiliili, the team competed against 55 other teams within its division. Other members of the team – c/MAJ Ladenia Lavatai, c/CSM Francis Ah Vui, and c/SSG Filiga Tufa – played integral roles in the teamwork necessary to develop, build, and program a successful robot.

SFC(R) Lei Solaita and MSG (R) Acania Puletasi, both Army JROTC Instructors with THS, expressed pride in the team's hard work and dedication, as well as the long hours spent preparing for the competition.

MAJ(R) Siimoa Galoia thanked God for the team's safe travels to and from Dallas and expressed gratitude for the fruitful results of the cadets' efforts.

The Robotics Program, currently an extracurricular activity in the JROTC program, is supported and funded by the US Army Cadet Command. This includes other STEM activities such as the Drone program, which are used by JROTC to recruit cadets in support of STEM initiatives.

Isalei G Liaiga, a Junior at Tafuna High School and one of the competitors at the Robotics Competition, also shared that she “encourages the youth of American Samoa to be more involved with STEAM since it offers various amazing career paths.”  

(STEAM Education is an approach to learning that uses Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics as access points for guiding student inquiry, dialogue and critical thinking, according to the Institute for ARTS INTEGRATION and STEAM.)

“We had the honor of representing THS JROTC ‘TOA Robotics’.

“We are the first high school from American Samoa to participate in this competition and TOA Robotics was awarded 1 of the 11 Judged Awards from this world event!” Liaiga said.

This year it was reported by Co-founder & President of VEX Robotics, Tony Norman, that "over 30,000 students from all 50 states and more than 50 countries were bringing their custom-built robots to the 16th annual VEX Robotics World Championship at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas."

The THS Army Instructors extends special thanks to sponsors Paramount Builders, ASTCA, Bluesky, and the THS PTA for their generous support, which allowed the team to operate at their best and represent the island of American Samoa proudly.

Additional thanks also goes out to the DOE Director, DOE Deputy Director, Deputy Director of Secondary, and the ASMSU DAI for their efforts in providing funding to support the team's travels.

Parents of the team are also thanked for their trust, prayers, and unwavering support.

Special mention is given to Mr. Ionatana Tauiliili for assisting the team in securing earlier return seats, and to Jordanna Maga for her assistance in chaperoning the team.

Lastly, THS Principal Tutuila Togilau is thanked for her support of the JROTC program, which has helped elevate Tafuna High School’s JROTC to new heights.