St. Pius Freshman to Compete in National Robotics Competition

freshman Courtney Lonsway will compete with her robotics team at a world championship competition in St. Louis later this week. Her team won the Rookie All-Star award at the Peachtree Regional Qualifier in March, and they're seeking the FIRST Robotics Competition Championship. 

Lonsway, a Decatur resident, is a member of the LINKS Robotics team made up of students from several local schools. LINKS is the aerospace and engineering extension to the Science, Engineering, Mathematics and Aerospace Academy at the Fernbank Science Center. LINKS is available to students in grades 9-12 who have been to the academy or other science center programs.

Earlier this school year, Lonsway and her team competed in a regional competition at Auburn University. Sixty-one teams from around the nation competed in the event. Each team set up a booth, displaying the abilities of their robots and advertisements. Her team was ranked 16th out of 61 teams. The team earned a spot at Auburn by placing well enough in the Georgia BEST Robotics Challenge in October.

Lonsway has been involved with the Science Night Out at the Fernbank Science Center since she was in third grade. The Science Night Out program teaches children how science can be interesting and fun as well as how it affects their daily lives.

The world championship runs from April 27-30.