The Tommie Kunst Junior High School robotics team #18223A, in the Santa Maria-Bonita School District, competed at the recent 2025 VEX IQ World Championship and solidified its position as having a top 100 robot in the world.

Members of the Tommie Kunst Junior High School robotics team #18223A at World Championship in Texas. (Courtesy photo)
Members of the Tommie Kunst Junior High School robotics team #18223A at World Championship. (Courtesy photo)

The invitation to the world championship in Dallas, Texas, marked a milestone in the team’s robotics journey, a testament to the dedication and skills of teammates Anthony Rodriguez Val, Nate Trevino, and Bernadette Bolusan.

Of 55 countries competing with 839 robots in attendance, only 61 robots were from the United States, and just nine were from California, including Tommie Kunst Junior High.

The Tommie Kunst team finished 75th overall in its category, an accomplishment that places them among the world’s elite robotics teams.

Team coach Helengrace Halpin, who teaches math at Tommie Kunst thanked the community for its support of the young competitors.

“We want to thank the Santa Maria community for all the support and love shown to our Tommie Kunst robotics team,” Halpin said. “Competing for the world’s championship was very rewarding and truly an experience to remember.

“We were able to showcase our designs and programming skills while simultaneously collaborating with other teams to work together and compete as a team.

“We learned so much which we will take with us to get better not just in building robots but in building ourselves to be more confident, responsible, tough, and forceful,” Halpin said.

The Tommie Kunst team invested countless hours in enhancing their robot engineering process, refining their coding skills, and honing their communication abilities to perform at a world-class level.

Dedicated team members tackled complex programming challenges; executed intricate autonomous routines, and functioned as a cohesive, problem-solving unit.

“The Santa Maria-Bonita School District congratulates the students of Tommie Kunst Junior High School robotics team #18223A for their exceptional performance and for representing our district and community with such distinction on a global stage. Their success is an inspiration to all our students and a testament to the power of STEM education,” the district said.