As President of Devil Robotics, I am pleased to present our annual report highlighting the achievements and progress of our organisation over the past year.
Devil Robotics is a volunteer-led organisation dedicated to inspiring students in grades 5 through 12 to become leaders and innovators in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). Our mission is to not only teach kids but to also foster skills in resilience, communication, teamwork, problem-solving, and critical thinking through our after-school robotics activities.
After-School Robotics Program
Our weekly robotics clubs for juniors and seniors have continued to introduce students to the fundamentals of designing, building, and programming robots. This hands-on approach enhances their technical skills and encourages creativity and innovation. Once again in 2025 we were at full capacity in the junior teams.
Our senior team had 6 students, who all were very engaged. In 2026 our focus is to grow the senior team out to 15 students.
Mentorship
Mentorship remains a cornerstone of our organisation. Our mentors generously contribute their time and expertise. Their guidance has been instrumental in the operation of our program and their valuable insights help construct our program and allow us to compete at regional and national competitions.
In 2025, we welcomed Charlie Prevost and Cailean Treloyn to our senior group. They both worked tirelessly to teach and assist our senior team to compete at the FIRST Tech Challenge regional event in Adelaide.
We are also very grateful to all the parents who volunteer their time with fund raising, mentoring and assisting us with events. Without you we wouldn’t be able to host the regional FIRST LEGO League event in Hobart.
2025 Competitions and Events
This year, our teams participated in several competitions and events, including:
- FIRST LEGO League – Juniors (Melbourne)
- FIRST Tech Challenge – Seniors (Adelaide)
- Festival of Bright Ideas (FOBI)
- Bruny Island Science Fun Day
- Bunnings BBQ Fundraiser
- FIRST LEGO League Hobart Regional
These experiences provide our students with opportunities to apply their skills in real-world scenarios, collaborate with their peers from other clubs and schools, and present their robots to the public. This allows them to gain experience, and to receive recognition for their hard work and creativity.
I would like to congratulate the junior FLL team ‘The Imps’, for winning the ‘Champions Award’ at the FIRST LEGO League Hobart Regional, winning their spot to compete in Melbourne at the national event. On the 6th December, ‘The Imps’ were awarded the ‘Rising All Star Award’ at the National Championship South competition. This award celebrates a team that the judges notice and expect great things from in the future. These achievements are a reflection of the effort and dedication of the entire team and their mentors.
I would also like to congratulate our senior FIRST Tech Challenge team who travelled in November to Adelaide for the South Australia Qualifier 2025. The senior team showed great teamwork and resilience as they knew heading into the competition that they still had a lot of work to do to get their robot ready. Despite this, team spirits were high and they made good use of their time the night before the event, improving the autonomous control system on the robot. The team had great experiences with their alliance partners and made steady improvements throughout the competition. The trip to Adelaide provided valuable experience, highlighted areas for future development, and showed how much the team could achieve through persistence, collaboration, and problem‑solving.
Once again we ran a successful fund raising event at Bunnings Glenorchy on 21st June 2025. We successfully raised over $1600 for Devil Robotics, and I wish to thank Andrea for organising the event, and all the families who volunteered their time to help out on the day.
Devil Robotics co-hosted the FIRST LEGO League Hobart Regional at St Mary’s College in Hobart on the 8th of November 2025. This takes a mammoth effort to organise and I would like to thank Bronwen Baume-Tarrant for taking on this role as the event co-ordinator. I would also like to thank the staff of St Mary’s College for allowing us to use your school grounds and for the amazing assistance and ease you created for everyone attending. I also wish to thank all our mentors, families and other volunteers for giving their time so generously on the day to help make it a fun and memorable event for all the participants.
2025 was the third year that Devil Robotics has been invited to participate in the Bruny Island Science Fun Day. I wish to thank Staja for taking the lead in organising the Devil Robotics display and thank all the families who volunteered their time to exhibit at the event.
Festival of Bright Ideas, held in August, is always a very fun event for Devil Robotics. This year, our students and mentors displayed various robots from the FLL and FTC competitions during the Schools Day and the Public Day. This event is a unique opportunity for students to develop their public speaking skills to talk to groups of students and young people about their robot designs and demonstrate the robot abilities. I wish to thank all the mentors and families involved, especially Rob and Andrea for taking the lead in organising our participation in this event. It was also wonderful to hear that Devil Robotics was voted the most popular booth by students, teachers and the public over the two days of the exhibition. We have also been invited by the organisers of FOBI (UTas) to exhibit at their December 2026 event in Glenorchy.
And finally, 2025 saw us present our Simon Hogwood Award in remembrance of one of our founding members. The award was given to three students, two from juniors and one from seniors, who embody the values of Devil Robotics based on three criteria: attendance and participation, commitment to learning, and helping others. We wish to congratulate Lewin, Noah and Nilu for their efforts and contributions throughout the year. The award recipients were chosen by the mentors of each team and given out in the last session of the year. We wish to congratulate the recipients for their efforts and contributions throughout the year. As President, I was very grateful to accept a surprise award and gift from the committee, thanking me for my efforts over the years to Devil Robotics.
Grants
We were successful in receiving a generous grant from the Tasmanian Community Fund for $50,000 to assist us in leasing a converted shipping container for two years to be placed on site at the Sustainability Learning Centre. This converted shipping container (site office) will be used as a workshop for our senior students. We are also using the grant to run professional development classes for science teachers and to allow primary and secondary schools groups to visit for classes on robotics and engineering design. We hope to reach at least 15 schools during the two year period.
Looking Ahead
Our leadership team has been working very hard to put in place governance around child safety policies. We have been working with the OIR (Office of the Independent Regulator) and Volunteering Tasmania, to make sure we are providing the safest possible environment for all the young people attending our club. Our mentors will undergo training in early March 2026 and once that is complete our website will be updated with these policies. We will communicate with parents to whom they should contact should they have a concern or question regarding their child’s safety.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to our dedicated mentors, committee members, enthusiastic students, and supportive parents.Together, we have built a wonderful community that not only builds robots but also supports and encourages our future leaders and innovators.
Thank you for your unwavering support and commitment to Devil Robotics.
Sincerely,
Bianca Shannon
President, Devil Robotics
