TEMPLE, Texas — Two Temple Independent School District middle school robotics teams faced off against the top competitors in Texas during the Boosting Engineering Science and Technology (BEST) Robotics State Tournament last weekend (December 12-13) in Dallas.
Robotics teams from Bonham Middle School and Travis Science Academy both earned the right to compete in the state tournament based on their performance at local meets earlier this school year. The two teams competed against a field primarily consisting of high school teams at the BEST Robotics State Tournament.
The Bonham Middle School team qualified in its first year of competition and went on to win the 2025 Rookie Bowl during the tournament. Bonham beat out 11 other first-year teams in the five-round contest to win the Rookie Bowl title and advance to the main competition. The school has 21 students involved with the robotics team and 13 of those students competed in the state tournament. Computer teacher Brandon Knight serves as the team’s coach and was very pleased to see how the team came together over the course of the semester and found success both in the classroom and in the competition.
“I was very proud and very surprised, just because I did not have anything to gauge it off of since we’ve never done this before,” Knight said. “The kids were ecstatic, and it was great to see that. It was really cool to see how proud they were of the hard work they put in and they definitely put in the work. Getting to compete against and beat some of the best new teams in the state was just the icing on the cake. The greatest thing I saw was the teamwork they had and the problem-solving. It was amazing to see how they would trouble shoot any problem they had, they never gave up, and worked through it.”
Eighth-grader Kayla Atkins is one of the team members who competed in the event. She said Knight’s enthusiasm about the program encouraged her to join the team. She plans to continue with robotics into high school and she says she is taking more than a medal and Rookie Bowl title out of the competition.
“It was really eye-opening to see the collaboration and different ideas with the team, and seeing the different strengths of each kid was really refreshing,” Atkins said. “I have really learned to be patient and there was so much trial-and-error involved. It definitely paid off and I would love to continue improving as I go into next year.”
The Travis Science Academy Robotics Team competed in the BEST Robotics State Tournament for the second straight year. Four veterans of last year’s state qualifying team were back among the nine students who competed in the state finals this year. A large number of the students are sixth graders and the team also had new coaches this year in eighth-grade science teacher David Sellepack and Temple ISD Career and Technical Education Coordinator Brianna Hubnik. Both coaches are excited about the success of the team and the impact the robotics team can have on the futures of the 16 total students involved with TSA robotics.
“I think it really opens them up to some whole new careers, and can propel them into engineering, or coding, or becoming machinists,” Sellepack said. “I was very impressed with these kids and how adaptable they were through the process. The kids were so fired up to have the chance to compete on the state level and they really handled themselves well. We had great cohesion and support of each other. It was so fun to see them kind of figure everything out.”
“It is a privilege to coach and mentor our BEST Robotics teams across the district, instilling STEM, professionalism, creative thinking, and preparing students for success,” Hubnik added. “We are especially proud of our middle school teams, who have demonstrated outstanding skill and excellence by successfully competing alongside high school teams.”
Teams must design and build their robots and are judged on a variety of factors during competition. Teams have to drive their robots through an obstacle course and complete a variety of tasks to earn points. Teams also produce an engineering notebook documenting the design and construction of the robot, create a marketing presentation, and complete a team exhibit and interviews with the judges.
In addition to helping coach the Travis Science Academy team, Hubnik also oversees and mentors all of the robotics teams across the district. She is not only proud of the way the two middle school teams represented Temple ISD, but Hubnik is also excited to see TISD robotics continue to grow and provide unique learning opportunities and experiences for students.
“Our students are experiencing a transformational approach to STEM education through the BEST Robotics competition,” Hubnik said. “Students directly apply principles of mechanical engineering, coding, and physics. They learn the complete Engineering Design Process – from prototyping to the live working product – making abstract concepts concrete. When failure occurs, students quickly learn to troubleshoot, collaborate under pressure, and persist through setbacks. In professional roles from lead programmer to marketing director, students develop effective communication, deadline management, and team cohesion.”