Our team members

Elsa

My name is Elsa and I'm an 8th grader at Piedmont Middle School. This is my second year of FTC, and I'm the captain of the hardware team. Previously, I competed in three years of FLL. I started robotics because I was interested in learning to build and code, and I thought it would be a good opportunity to practice my skills in real-world situations. I think the competitive, productive environment at scrimmages and competition really makes all the hard work fun and worthwhile. I’m really excited to work with our team this year, and hope to make it to Regionals!

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Aliya

My name is Aliya and I am an 8th grader at Piedmont Middle School. I am the software lead of the Piedmont Pioneers. I started with FLL, and did that for three years, and am now in my second st year of FTC.  I started doing robotics because I enjoy working with technology, problem solving, and was excited to practice and develop skills. I’ve also enjoyed the other parts of FTC, like outreach and fundraising, as these are things that are important in many situations. I’m excited to see how far we can get in the competition, and looking forward to doing robotics for another year.

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Grey

I‘m Grey Sanford and I’m an 8th grader at Piedmont Middle school. This is my second year on the Piedmont Pioneers. I am part of the hardware group. I wanted to do hardware because I like to build things and be very hands on with the work I'm doing. I joined robotics because when I grow up I want to become an engineer and I think that joining a robotics team is a great way to develop your mechanical and coding skills. My goals for the Piedmont Pioneers team this year are that we try hard to make it to regionals, have fun as a group and learn from mistakes throughout the season and build from them.

 

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Ed

My name is Ed Balasingham and I’m an 8th grader at Piedmont middle school. I started with robotics, FLL in 4th grade and this is my second year of FTC. My focus is on the software side of the team. I started on robotics since I enjoy programming and a good challenge. I hope the skills I develop this season will enable me to become a better software engineer. My goal for the team is to get to regionals and have fun. Outside robotics, I like spending time with my friends, reading sci-fi novels and fencing.

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Dylan

My name is Dylan, and I am on the hardware side of the team. I am in 6th grade at Piedmont Middle School, and I used to do FLL for 3 years. I started doing robotics because I like building things, and was interested in expanding my knowledge. This is my first year in FTC, and I am looking forward to hopefully winning competitions and a fun experience this year!

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Elliot

I’m Elliott, an 8th grader at Hillcrest Middle School. This is my first year at FTC, and I was previously in FLL for 2 years. I am on the hardware side of the team this year. I am interested in mechanical things and have built a go-kart. I do enjoy the social aspect of the robotics team along with the competitiveness. I’m looking forward to this year in FTC!

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Sam

Hi, I’m Sam, a 7th grader at Hillcrest Middle School. This is my first year of FTC, but I was on an FLL team last year. I am on the software team. I started robotics because Elliott, my friend on the team, did FLL and told me about it. It was fun so I continued to FTC. I like the competitiveness of robotics, and I enjoy coding and building. I also think FTC will strengthen my tech and problem solving skills. While this is my first year of FTC, I’m excited for the upcoming season.

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Max

My name is Max and I’m in 8th grade.I am on the software side of the Piedmont Pioneers. This is my first year in FTC, which I joined to get experience with robotics and to have fun. I did the level below FTC (FLL) for 2 years. Joining FTC has been a lot of fun and a good experience. By doing FTC this year,I hope to inspire others and do well.

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