Fairmont State University to Host West Virginia VEX Robotics State Championship
From March 16-22, Fairmont State University’s Falcon Center will be the epicenter of competitive robotics as it hosts four VEX Robotics state championships. This premier event will bring together West Virginia’s top elementary, middle, and high school teams to compete in both the VEX V5 Robotics Competition and the VEX IQ Robotics Competition.
Over six days of intense tournaments, 164 teams will battle it out in more than 700 matches, showcasing their engineering skills, strategic thinking, and programming expertise. Competitors will not only take part in thrilling head-to-head matches but will also demonstrate their best driver and autonomous programming skills, as well as present their robot design process to expert judges. The ultimate goal? Securing one of the 19 coveted trophies that grant advancement to the prestigious VEX World Championships in Dallas, Texas, this April.
Fairmont State University is proud to foster initiatives such as this, helping to expand STEM education in K-12 schools across the state and inspiring the next generation of innovators. By hosting events like the VEX Robotics state championships, the university continues to support hands-on learning opportunities that develop critical thinking, teamwork, and technical skills among young students.
“Due to the numerous snow days and flooding across much of our state, it has been a hard year for many teams to find time to practice and attend tournaments,” said Dr. Todd Ensign, Fairmont State faculty and Program Manager for the NASA IV&V Education Resource Center. “Despite these challenges, the overall quality of teams’ robot design, game strategy, and documentation of their engineering and programming process continues to increase, proving that West Virginia as a group is truly competing head-to-head with teams from the top states in the nation.”
Ensign added, “We are excited to welcome so many talented young competitors to Fairmont State University for these state championships. This event not only highlights the innovation and dedication of students across West Virginia but also underscores Fairmont State’s commitment to STEM education.”
The competitions are free and open to the public, offering an excellent opportunity for the community to witness the future of robotics in action. A full event schedule is available at www.wvrobot.org/events/2025-vex-states.
For more information on the WV Robotics Alliance, event details, or volunteering opportunities, please contact Todd Ensign at todd.ensign@fairmontstate.edu or John Holbrook at john.holbrook@fairmontstate.edu.
