LOCAL OUTREACH
USF Engineering Expo
To develop community awareness, promote STEM, and spark the interests of young minds, FIRST® Team 79 Krunch continues to participate in engineering expos and work together on projects with the University of South Florida.
KRUNCH SUMMER WORKSHOPS
For over a decade, Team 79 Krunch members and alumni ran summer workshops for students in grades 3-8. We also offered a GIRLS ONLY workshop for girls ages 13-15. Over 1,800 students learned how robotics uses math & science. Students spent most of the week building a small robot to complete a challenge and were taught the principles of FIRST® and the concept of Gracious Professionalism®.
CLEARWATER LIBRARY SPARK PROGRAM AND EXPO
Team 79 Krunch initiated the SPARK Program at the Clearwater Public Library to foster interest in STEM for underprivileged elementary students in the Clearwater area.
In 2016, Team 79 Krunch worked with the City of Clearwater and its mayor to host a SPARK Expo. For this event, several engineering organizations explained how engineering is an integral part of modern society. At our expo, we had presentations including an underwater ROV, a bomb detecting robot, and a life size R202 before an audience of over 300 kids.
DEFENSE MANUFACTURING CONFERENCE
Attending the Defense Manufacturing Conference alongside Keynote speaker, Dean Kamen – Founder of FIRST®, and nine other FIRST® teams was perhaps the most rewarding outreach event for Team 79 Krunch. We were able to educate 3,000+ leading industry professionals on the many benefits of the FIRST® programs.
STEM INSPIRATION
Since its debut in 2009, Team 79 Krunch’s t-shirt cannon robot has been impressing students and adults throughout Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough County. In 2010, it became a legend when it was featured on live television during a pep rally, reaching over 1 million people in the Tampa Bay area. Since its creation, our robot has participated in over 100 demonstrations at schools, libraries, festivals, events, local businesses, museums and more plus has inspired countless people.
PINELLAS COUNTY’S MOBILE HAZARDOUS WASTE COLLECTION & RECYCLING PROGRAM
At Krunch Waste Events, Team Krunch 79 helps to ensure the proper disposal of dangerous products, keeping them out of landfills, and preserving Florida’s aquifers and water sources. According to the Pinellas County Utilities Department, over the years Team 79 Krunch served 1,000+ visitors at its mobile collection site and collected over 1 million pounds of electronics, latex paint, chemicals and batteries. Of the waste collected, 98% is converted directly into recycled products.
TEMPEST ‘N’ TAMPA (TNT)
ROBOTICON TAMPA BAY
In 2007, Team 79 Krunch started its annual, signature off-season event, Tempest ‘N’ Tampa (“TNT”) to promote the mission of FIRST®, using robotics and technology to attract young people to show how much fun STEM can be. FIRST® Team 79 Krunch members, parents and mentors spent over 1,000 hours planning and hosting the largest event of its kind in the South.
Over the years, TNT grew and drew thousands of teachers and students from around the nation, progressing from being hosted in the gym of the University of Tampa to being held in at the USF Sun Dome, allowing Team 79 Krunch to spread the message and ideals of FIRST®. The event itself hosted FIRST® FRC, FTC, FLL and VEX competitions or demonstrations. An on-site “lock-in” provided teams with free overnight accommodations, giving students from across the country a chance to work and relax together. FTC leaders hosted packed seminars about upcoming games.
By 2013, TNT had made such a tremendous impact that the event was taken over by LI4E (Learning is for Everyone) and renamed ROBOCON.
Today, the event is known as ROBOTICON Tampa Bay, a youth robotics showcase organized each fall by the Foundation for Community Driven Innovation, a nonprofit educational organization, in partnership with PLUGHITZ Live, which Team 79 Krunch still proudly participates in and supports.
DINOS AND DRAGONS OPENING NIGHT
The Interact Club of Krunch Robotics (a.k.a. Team 79 Krunch) was invited to demonstrate their robot and inspire guests about STEM at the Museum of Archaeology, Paleontology & Science in New Port Richey on the opening night of their Dinos and Dragons exhibit.
Cruisin’ The Park Community Festival & Car Show
Since the Rotary Club of East Lake Sunrise started its first community festival and car show in 2006, Team 79 Krunch has been excited to be a part of such a fantastic community event with 200 to 250 cars and 3,000 to 4,000 people in attendance. From promoting the event by handing out hundreds of flyers at other car shows/cruises, to selling 50-50 tickets, helping at the food tent, doing set up/takedown, clean-up, and, of course, shooting t-shirts to the crowd during our robot demonstration, Team 79 Krunch members gladly do what they can to help during “Krunch Time”!
ANNUAL TOUCH-A-TRUCK & SAFETY FAIR
For many years, Team 79 Krunch has participated in the Lowe’s Touch-A-Truck Safety Fair creating excitement about robotics and promoting FIRST® and STEM.
Rotary Club of East Lake Sunrise
Road Clean-Ups
Starting in 2022, The Interact Club of Krunch Robotics (a.k.a. “Team 79 Krunch”) members have helped our fellow Rotarians keep Pinellas County clean and beautiful with road clean-ups!
INSPIRING OUR FUTURE LEADERS
By enacting robot demonstrations at elementary, middle schools and high schools, Team 79 Krunch provides youth the opportunity to see firsthand the results of being a part of something larger than themselves. Students are shown that not only do technological fields hold a variety of opportunities for success, but also that the basic concepts of STEM and invention are exciting and interesting. In addition, Team 79 Krunch members have coached and mentored school STEM clubs, participated in Discovery Nights, and has supported the start of 40 FIRST® teams to spread the message of FIRST® and the importance of STEM.
In early childhood education, STEM teaches problem-solving, encourages adaption and knowledge application, builds resilience, fosters ingenuity and creativity, and encourages teamwork. These disciplines pave the way for a healthy environment, productive citizens and a prosperous future in the global workforce.
Here are just a few schools Team 79 Krunch has inspired:
Cypress Woods Elementary School
Palm Harbor Montessori Academy
Highland Lakes Elementary School
Lake St. George Elementary
Pinellas Park Elementary School
East Lake Middle School
Tarpon Springs Middle School
Jesuit High School
Berkley Preparatory School
Palm Harbor University High School
Forest High School – Ocala, FL