(WAND) — The Illinois First Tech Challenge Championship Tournament kicks off this weekend in Elgin. Super SCREAM Bros will be representing Macon County at the major robotics competition.
"I never thought we would make it this far when we were meeting in our basement and we had three members," Suckow explained.
Benjamin Suckow was one of the founding members of the group 10 years ago, and is now preparing for what could be his final competition.
"I've been one of our main programmers and one of our main media guys," Suckow told WAND News.
His experience on the team led him to chose a major in Computer Science. The skills he's gained with Super SCREAM Bros will give him a leg up on other students in the fall.
"I have learned so many things that are giving me a bit of a jump start as far as the computer science field," Suckow said.
Sophomore Elizabeth Cornett said she's also considering a career in the STEM field.
"Now I'm looking into Rose-Holman University and their bio-medical engineering major," Cornett explained.
One of the first women on the team, she said Super SCREAM Bros is opening up opportunities outside the classroom.
"A lot of outreach and getting to meet new people, and learning about the robot an all aspects of STEM," Cornett added.
Jeffrey Suckow has been watching the team and students flourish over the past 10 years.
"Its inspiring to me to see how much they grow year after year," Suckow told WAND News.
He's an engineer at Caterpillar by day, and said the skills students learn in the club will directly translate to the real world.
"Its very similar to what I do in my daily job and I'd take a lot of them," Suckow added.
You can watch Super SCREAM Bros Saturday morning by clicking here.
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