Current Announcements:

April 7th, 2020

WRO Foundation/WRO USA to Offer Free Lessons in Virtual Robotics

In response to the COVID-19 crisis, the WRO Foundation/WRO USA will be launching a FREE series of lessons for elementary, middle and high school students who have had very little or no experience with robotics entitled “Introduction to Virtual Robotics” to be aired beginning Thursday, April 9, 2020 on both the

1. WRO USA Facebook page – https://facebook.com/wrousa

2. WRO Foundation YouTube Channel – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Iciw8STMmR-fp9cijJYaA?view_as=public

Hosted by Alex Crooks, World Robot Olympiad (WRO) USA Program Director, the weekly series (new courses uploaded every Thursday at 4:00 pm EST), will take the participants through a beginner’s course of basic skills to assist young people with their interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and having fun learning robotics. The weekly sessions will be followed-up with a live streaming session on Fridays at 4:00 pm EST to cover the material they learned on the previous day.

An additional FREE course will also be offered on Tuesdays at 4:00 pm EST entitled “WRO Virtual Robotics Skills Course” intended for an audience of students who have had previous experience in WRO physical robotics tournaments and wish to expand and adapt their knowledge into the virtual world. This will also be aired on both the WRO USA Facebook page and YouTube Channel beginning Tuesday, April 14, 2020. This series will also be followed-up with a live streaming session on Wednesdays at 4:00 pm EST to discuss the material from the previous day.

All participants in either course will receive access to a FREE 60-day trial license for the Virtual Robotics Toolkit Simulator designed by Cogmation Robotics.

For more information or questions on the FREE courses being offered from the WRO Foundation/WRO USA, please send your inquiries to: info@wro-foundation.org.

March 27th, 2020

Dear Friends,

By now, most of you have seen or heard about the press release issued by WRO Association cancelling the WRO International Finals 2020 in Montreal and the three Friendship Invitationals in China, Italy and the USA for this year. If not, here is a link to the press release: link

We understand this was a very hard decision and certainly applaud the WRO Association Board of Directors and Staff for their leadership in doing the right thing. Painful as the decision was, in today’s uncertain atmosphere, the safety and health of our entire community must come first.

As stated in the press release, national organizers are responsible for events held at the national level and, in the United States, that responsibility falls to the WRO Foundation.

After careful consideration and in response to the many questions we have received, we would like to provide you with some direction as we move forward:

• WRO USA will NOT be cancelling the upcoming season yet but will instead recommend a delay to the start of the season to begin in July providing time for the COVID-19 outbreak in the USA to start its downward trend after we as a nation have flattened the curve. Of course, this date and decision will be fluid based on recommendations of the World Health Organization and US Public Health officials.

• The competition season and qualifying rounds will run from July – September with the US National Finals targeted for the end of October/beginning of November. Exact date and location to be determined.

• If you are a host who needs to reschedule the date of your competition, please contact Alex Crooks, WRO USA Program Director, at: ac@wro-foundation.org.

• Anyone who has already registered as a team on the WRO Foundation website for a competition that had been scheduled PRIOR to July 1st will have their registration either refunded at their written request or have it automatically transferred to the NEW date of the cancelled/rescheduled tournament.

• Providing some activities and support to the US community is paramount to the WRO Foundation. Beginning in April, we will be offering a FREE 60-day trial of our Virtual Simulation to our WRO community and the general public so that homebound students, teachers, mentors and others can stay active with their STEM and robotic skills. Learning never stops.

• Beginning May, we will be launching our first USA Virtual National Finals Competition with four qualifying rounds occurring during the months of May & June with the USA Virtual National Finals taking place the beginning of July. Again, exact dates to be determined.

More details will be forthcoming next week but we wanted to let you know that we will continue to support your efforts here in the United States and certainly understand the many challenges facing all of you during the Coronavirus pandemic – we are facing them with you. We will be scheduling a conference call with all hosts and state partners next week to discuss details.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact any of us here at the WRO Foundation Office. And we encourage all of you, no matter what state you live in, to please follow the recommended guidelines as issued by the World Health Organization and US Public Health officials.

We are all in this together! Stay safe!

Sincerely,

Larry, Alex and Joyce

WRO Foundation Staff