At University of Advancing Technology (UAT), innovation isn’t just taught—it’s lived. This spring, a team of first-time competitors stepped into the high-pressure world of VEX U Robotics and walked away with more than a trophy—they gained experience, resilience, and the Judges Award for outstanding perseverance. But the story behind their success started long before the competition.
What many don’t realize is that UAT’s robotics entry was also a Production Studio class project, giving students real-world experience in project management, teamwork, and engineering under pressure. In just five short weeks, the team designed and built two functional robots—a ring-collector and a climbing bot—meeting the technical requirements of a complex game with limited parts, limited funding, and almost no access to proper tools.
Despite these constraints, they pushed forward with help from The Workshop, UAT’s maker club, where students got hands-on assistance, tool access, and support from fellow peers.
But the team’s contributions extended far beyond the arena. Over the course of the semester, they also volunteered at several local robotics events across the Valley, helping support younger students in middle and high school robotics leagues.
In addition, they built their own team website, and designed a custom logo—showcasing their commitment not only to engineering, but also to branding, outreach, and digital presentation. This helped the team establish a professional identity and share their journey with the wider community.
Led by Marcus Frazier and Alexa Tuchtenhagen, the team brought together a diverse mix of talent including Levi Terry, Alexander Brittain, Terrance Harris, Jacob Levine, Sean Johnson, Aliven “AJ” Osorio, Connor Kovacs, and Toni Martinez. Each member contributed critical skills—from the robot’s design and coding to mechanical assembly ,documentation, and driving.
With no pre-built parts and little room for error, the team got creative. They 3D-printed components on-site, coded from scratch, and refined their design through constant iteration—often troubleshooting problems with makeshift solutions or custom-built hardware. The result? Two fully functional competition-ready robots built entirely in-house.
This ingenuity is what caught the attention of the VEX U judges, who awarded UAT the Judges Award, a distinction reserved for teams that show outstanding resilience, effort, and innovation.
The team isn’t slowing down. With competition experience now behind them, they plan to return to VEX U next year stronger and better prepared. In the meantime, they’re looking to get their parts for next season prepared, volunteer at regional competitions, and continue evolving their robots and engineering skills.
This project not only showcased what UAT students are capable of—it proved that limitations are just fuel for creativity.
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