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Miami Coral Park High Senior High School’s robotics club – Ramtech – is off to an exciting start this year after clinching first place at the regional robotics competition in Orlando, making them state champions.
Known for its consistent excellence, the club has qualified for the World Championship in Houston every year since 2018. Last year’s team earned an impressive rank of 55 from among more than 3,600 competitors.
“Competing is how to best prepare students. It requires team organization, top engineering skills, designing, CAD (computer aided design) skills to computerize and design your robot, to manufacture and assemble it,” said Charlie Delahoz, Ramtech coach and engineering teacher at the school. “We do everything here which is why we have one of the top labs in the state and the best engineering program in the state.”
The Ramtech team is comprised of approximately 60 students, primarily from the school’s prestigious engineering magnet program. Miami Coral Park’s Senior High School’s engineering Magnet is one the many specialized Magnet science programs Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) offers.
The students at Coral Park’s Ramtech club dedicate countless hours to designing, building, and programming robots within a rigorous eight-week period between January and March.
The club, which joined the FIRST Robotics League in 1997, has a long-standing tradition of innovation and teamwork.
To build their robots, students rely on innovative tools and technology. Using computer-aided design (CAD) software, they develop precise blueprints before manufacturing and assembling components in the school’s workshop. The finished robots, built to endure the challenges of annual competitions, are programmed to perform complex tasks with precision and reliability.
“You’re using machines, making robots, coding, and thinking on the fly,” said junior Luke Amor, a member of the design team in the engineering magnet. “What I love is the process of taking an idea, designing it, and then bringing it to life by building and assembling it.”
The team continuously refines its robots throughout the competition season, using insights gained from each contest to improve performance. Last year, they even incorporated an AI system that allowed their robot to gauge distances and strategize during matches.
“Each year, we adapt and innovate,” Delahoz said. “For instance, between competitions in Oklahoma and Houston, we implemented a completely new system. We had the robot pick up a rubber doughnut, and then redesigned it to handle defense for the next challenge.”
Every competition presents new and unique challenges. Last year’s task required robots to climb and launch rubber doughnuts into specific targets, including scaling a chain to deposit the items. Ramtech excelled, becoming one of only two teams to complete this feat in Orlando, securing the spot as state champions.
The hands-on experience of designing and competing with robots allows students to apply the physics, geometry, and coding concepts they learn in Coral Park’s robust academic programs. The school offers six physics classes, three calculus courses, and a four-year coding curriculum — all of which provide invaluable knowledge for the competitions.
“These challenges bring classroom lessons to life,” Delahoz said. “For example, students had to calculate how to lift a 140-pound piece of equipment using the robot — a true test of engineering and problem-solving.”
The skills gained in Ramtech pay off well beyond high school. Many students from this club earn scholarships to prestigious institutions like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and other top engineering schools.
Miami Coral Park’s engineering magnet and Ramtech offer students an unparalleled opportunity to merge academics with firsthand experience, preparing them for bright futures in STEM fields. Programs like this highlight why Miami-Dade County Public Schools is your best choice for seeking exceptional education opportunities.
Scott A. Weiner is principal at Miami Coral Park Senior High School.
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