The Dominance of Hesston Robotics High School Program

Hesston Robotics, a high school program in Kansas, is preparing to compete in the VEX Robotics World Championship. The program has established itself as one of the most dominant high school robotics initiatives in the state and is regarded as one of the top programs in the United States.

According to reporting by KSN, the team is currently working to refine its robot for the global stage following a strong performance at the national level.

Program Development and Technical Challenges

Students within the program attribute their success to a collaborative environment and strong leadership. Hesston senior Time Van Bergeijk noted that the program benefits from an excellent coach and an excellent program, which fosters an atmosphere where students build and learn from one another.

The technical preparation for these competitions requires significant endurance and iterative development. Junior Trestin Schmidt stated that the process of getting a robot to the necessary competitive standard requires a lot of perseverance and just a lot of hard work.

Robotics teacher Trevor Foreman indicated that the level of competition is increasing annually as more schools across Kansas enter the field, making the path to victory more difficult each year.

The VEX Robotics World Championship

The team’s current objective is the VEX Robotics World Championship, which is the largest robotics competition of its kind globally. The event brings together top-performing teams from around the world to compete in engineering and programming challenges.

Senior Isaac Swartzendruber expressed the team’s ambitions for the event, stating that he hopes the program can reach the elimination matches and push their capabilities as far as possible.

Funding Requirements for Global Competition

Despite the team’s technical readiness, the program faces a financial hurdle regarding the world championship. While the school provides a classroom budget and covers the costs for trips to the national competitions, those funds do not extend to the world championship.

Trevor Foreman explained that the school does not officially recognize the world championship event for funding purposes.

The school doesn’t recognize worlds, which is fine; they’ve done their part.

Trevor Foreman, Robotics Teacher

As of April 15, 2026, the program is seeking a final push in funding to cover the costs associated with attending the championship.