DURHAM – Superintendent Dr. Robert Shaps and Principal Bill Sullivan are pleased to share that five Oyster River Middle School (ORMS) robotics teams qualified for the 2026 NH/VT Robotics State Championships.

On Saturday, Dec. 13, ORMS hosted 72 teams from across the region for the 2026 VEX IQ Robotics Competition. Five ORMS teams earned their spots at the state competition:

• 2820A “Kinetic Kaos”: Placed first
• 2820B “Goblin Gang”: Placed third
• 2820C “Stackbot”: Placed fourth
• 2820D “Robodawgs”: Placed fifth, Design Award winner
• 2820W “We Don’t Know”: Placed tenth

Team 2820D received the Design Award, which recognizes a team that demonstrates an organized and effective design process, showcasing their engineering skills and teamwork.

"We're excited about the opportunity to compete at the state level," said members of Team 2820D.

ORMS Robotics Coach and Digital Learning Specialist Jade Terrill, who coaches the team alongside STEM Teachers Jay Derick and Jason Duff, expressed pride in the qualifying teams' achievements.

"All of us are incredibly proud of our teams and the hard work they've put in to earn their spots at the states’ championships," said Terrill.

"It's exciting to see our students' growing passion for robotics," said Superintendent Shaps. "Our rapidly evolving world calls for creativity, problem-solving, and teamwork. Oyster River students demonstrated these skills in addition to their ability to adapt, innovate, and lead. I couldn't be prouder of their success and of the coaching team's dedicated work."

The VEX IQ Robotics Competition challenges elementary and middle school students in grades 4-8 to design, build, and program robots to compete in game-based engineering challenges.

The five qualifying ORMS teams will compete at the 2026 NH/VT VEX IQ State Championships in February at Manchester Community College.

VEX IQ robotics teams and supporters are seen in the Oyster River Middle School gym.