Their South LA schools didn't offer robotics. So they started a club of their own

Hazel Victoria, a seventh-grader at St. Emydius Catholic School in Lynwood, is building an “adorable but functional” robot that can pick up trash. Specifically, trash left behind by hikers in the forest.

She named it Milo-Bot, after her uncle who died last year. “He loved the forest and he would always get so mad when he saw trash on the floor so I decided to make a robot dedicated to him,” she said.

Victoria’s journey into tech has not always been smooth. Growing up, she didn’t have the internet at home because it was too expensive, so she learned to play computer games with her friends and cousins at their homes.

Cyber-Nauts team members George Secaida and Isaac Turcios.

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Last fall, the 12-year-old started going to Bell Tech Center, a community resource for low-income residents who don’t have broadband or computers at home. There she met other teens, like 18-year-old Isaac Turcios and his twin sister Elizabeth, who had been going to the center since fifth grade.

Elizabeth Turcios, Cyber-Nauts team co-captain, also does media and fundraising for the team.

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Isaac was interested in robotics when he was younger, but it wasn’t offered at his neighborhood school, Bell High, or other nearby schools. When he got into the prestigious California Academy of Math and Science (CAMS) in Carson, a 15-mile commute away, he was finally able to take advanced coding courses.

But he wanted to extend his experience to local teens — so last summer he began to recruit for a robotics team, with guidance from the Bell Tech Center. Students from Warren High School, Odyssey Stem Academy and other local schools showed interest, and the CYBER-NAUTS were formed.

"We got to meet a lot of new people, work with other teams and build a robot from scratch when none of us had done it before," he said.

CYBER-NAUTS team robot placing plastic "pixel" on backdrop for points.

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Their goal was to compete in the annual First Tech Challenge in Fountain Valley in February, for middle and high school students across the region. About 40 teams of up to 15 people design, build and program an autonomous robot. The machine has to be small enough to fit into a 18x18x18 box. During the competition, it scores points by picking up small disk-like objects called pixels and placing them on to a wall. There’s a fierce rivalry, as the teams form alliances and face off against each other.

The CYBER-NAUTS have been meeting at least twice a week to work on their robot, who they've named Jeffrey, since last August. But building a robot can also be expensive. It's cost about $3,000 to construct it from start to finish, plus registration fees for the competition. The team fundraised through car washes and getting sponsorship from local businesses. They also made use of equipment at the center.

CYBER-NAUTS lead coach Marian Gomez helps make adjustments to the robot after the first challenge.

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“Sometimes we can't afford to buy certain parts, or sometimes they're out of stock, so having 3D printers and stuff [at the center] really helps,” Turcios said.

The team’s coach and mentor, Marian Gomez, recently graduated from Cal State L.A. with a computer science degree. She was a fellow for the Southeast Community Development Corporation, which runs the Bell Tech Center.

“Some of our students are taking classes for computer science or engineering and what they have at home isn’t sufficient enough to support the software that is required for that class,” she said. “So they come over to the center and use our equipment to do their homework.”

While she’s never competed in the First Tech Challenge, Gomez has been a judge for the competition. She was able to guide students on what to expect throughout the entire process.

“It’s been an amazing journey with them,” she said. “This is new to all of us. For code, we’re going one step at a time.”

First Tech Challenge competitors setting up their stations.

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Last Saturday, 42 teams gathered at Fountain Valley High School to finally compete against each other, many coming from far more well-resourced high schools.

By 8 a.m., the room was buzzing as dozens of teens tested out their machines and made any last-minute adjustments. Most teams wore outfits that matched their robots. The CYBER-NAUTS wore navy blue hoodies with a team logo designed by co-captain Elizabeth Turcios.

Hazel Victoria, Cyber-Nauts team member.

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The disparity between different teams was evident to those who looked closely. Team member Maya Valenzuela noticed another group of students who had been able to buy higher quality parts for their robot.

"The other team had better motors. That’s why they move so smoothly. But ours don’t have that," she said.

As the competition started, they stood around a large mat on the ground, directing Jeffrey with a remote control. The robot glided around, reaching out its arm to grab the pixels and take them to the wall.

It did well — but despite their valiant efforts, ultimately, not well enough to get through to the final round.

The team was stoked, however, to receive a Judge’s Choice Award, which recognizes unique teams for their outstanding efforts. (A team of CAMS students called NerdHerd Insomniacs won first place).

Elizabeth said the team was shocked when they won the award.

“We were jumping around being very crazy,” she said. “We had tried so hard just building the robot despite limited resources. We’re proud regardless of the fact that we didn’t win because it’s something we didn’t expect to achieve in the first place.”

Isaac and Elizabeth are graduating high school this year, so they may return next season as mentors.

Meanwhile, 12-year-old Hazel plans to continue competing with the CYBER-NAUTS through high school.

"I'm gonna be here for five years!" she laughed. "But it will be fun, it’ll be worth it."

She says she plans to work for NASA one day.