As reported in a recent News story, All Saints Catholic Schools is working to build its robotics program, with a winning fifth-grade team and a hopeful middle school team preparing for the first round of competition.

Several other Northeast Michigan schools — and, indeed, schools around the state and around the country — also are building robotics programs.

And it’s no surprise, given all the benefits of robotics for student development and preparation for the real world they’ll inherit after graduation.

Beyond the obvious preparation for science, technology, engineering, and math careers, robotics provides a host of other skills: problem-solving, teamwork, critical thinking, reading and writing and public speaking as the contests require students to prepare presentations about their robots, marketing and fundraising as the students seek out sponsors, and so much more.

Plus, the students who participate really seem to enjoy it, giving some students the reason they need to show up to class, where they can benefit from all of the other curricular activities at school.

We urge schools to continue investing in robotics programs for their students, and we urge local businesses who aren’t already to consider sponsoring a club at a local school. Doing so will prepare local students to potentially be local employees, benefiting the businesses and the community in the long run.

And, to every local student making a robot for competition, we say good luck!

— The Alpena News