Odin’s Robotics, the robotics team from Van Hoosen Middle School in Rochester Hills, Michigan, recently made a special appearance at Dayco’s headquarters to unveil the team’s strategic plan for success at the upcoming 2019 VEX IQ world championships.

While at Dayco’s headquarters in Troy, Michigan, the sixth-grade students presented the different techniques and strategies they’ve developed as a team and conducted a live demonstration to show what it will take to become a 2019 champion.

Van Hoosen is one of nine teams to qualify from Michigan and one of 400 teams to qualify globally to the world championships, which will take place April 24-30 in Louisville, Kentucky. The sixth-graders shared their robot’s key design features, pointing out that the robot was engineered entirely out of VEX-approved parts and VEX-approved software. When planning the design, they made sure to focus on key components, including the robot’s driving abilities, programming skills and its ability to perform alliance work.

When learning about the opportunity to sponsor the robotics team, “Dayco eagerly jumped on board to support Odin’s Robots and is excited to be involved with the sixth-graders initiatives, as they make their way to the championships in Louisville,” the company said.

“Dayco’s generous sponsorship came as quite a pleasant surprise from the team,” said Shanti Raj, Van Hoosen Middle School robotics coach. “We are very appreciative of the support and look forward to competing in Louisville.”

The team will use the sponsorship towards registration fees, hotel accommodations and other travel expenses.

“Dayco’s community involvement initiatives and the opportunity to support a team of dedicated and motivated students couldn’t be a more perfect fit,” said Jake Santora, vice president OE sales for Dayco. “We look forward to hearing about their competition and wish them the best of luck at the world championships.”