(Credit: The Other Team 9137A)
The 5-member-strong Explorations Robotics Club represented Pennsylvania in Dallas with innovation, teamwork, and community-powered success
In only their first competitive season, a local team of young innovators from the Explorations Robotics Club of Lansdale took their talents to the world stage.
The Other Team 9137A, made up of five students aged 12 to 14, landed in Dallas, TX this week to represent Lansdale and Pennsylvania at the VEX IQ Robotics World Championship, where they competed alongside 80 top-tier teams from more than 65 countries.
Over three days of competition beginning Monday, The Other Team engaged in intense rounds of programming and driver-controlled challenges. Each match paired them with rotating partner teams from around the world, requiring fast-thinking strategy, adaptation, and collaboration — not to mention a bit of international teamwork flair that involved Google Translate.
The World Championship represents the culminating event of the VEX IQ Robotics season, the largest global youth robotics competition, featuring elementary and middle school-aged teams. It is a milestone for the still-young Explorations Robotics Club, founded just last year by Nicole Dudek, a Lansdale parent and engineering advocate who saw a gap in STEM enrichment in the community.
Watch the competition finals and awards here.
“We are not associated with North Penn School District – they don’t have a Robotics Club, and that’s one of the reasons why I started this. I noticed young people interested in doing more innovative technology, so I started making calls to find out what was in our area,” Dudek said, adding other similar clubs exist in the Perkiomen Valley and the Exton area. “There was not enough interest in the area and no program existed. Then, I started reaching out to others that can help.”
With the help of local retired engineers Olavi Kampari and Gary Severson, who volunteer their times teaching robotics at local libraries, the club chose the VEX platform — one of the most recognized in the world, aside from FIRST — to introduce students to competitive robotics.
The result? A student-led, volunteer-powered success story. Though some members are homeschoolers and others attend North Penn High School part-time, the team has formed a tight-knit unit of budding engineers and coders.
Their journey hasn’t just been technical — it is also been logistical. Because the program operates independently from school systems, funding the team is a grassroots effort, relying on parent contributions, community fundraising, and local sponsors.
“Last year it cost about $3,600 to run the club. This year, we needed $6,000 to run — and that’s before the added cost of getting to Dallas,” said Dudek, who has two of her own children on the team. “This is totally volunteer-based and fully self-funded. We are asking individuals to help us fund. When it happens within a school district, you can get sponsors and grants. That’s not available for us.”
Despite those challenges, the team’s accomplishments are stacking up. Their redesigned robot, streamlined and agile, has performed well throughout the season — and now has a chance to shine among the best in the world
The journey doesn’t end in Texas. As soon as the championship wraps, The Other Team will dive into a brand-new challenge for the 2025-2026 VEX season, continuing a year-round cycle of design, coding, building, and problem-solving. The club is already looking to grow, welcoming new members and potential support to keep the momentum rolling.
“One of the kids last year loved it so much, they applied to the Engineering Academy at the high school,” Dudek said. “We didn’t expect to get this far. With our second year of doing it, we keep learning and it’s pretty awesome to make it all the way.”
As they take their place on the global robotics stage, one thing’s for certain: this group from Lansdale has put local innovation on the map, and the world is watching.
Support Explorations Robotics Club
Interested in supporting the team or helping fund future seasons? Community members, local businesses, and STEM advocates are encouraged to get involved as the club grows. To learn more, reach out via email at explorecreatediscover@gmail.com.
