The John Cooper School Robotics Teams to Compete Among World’s Best at VEX Robotics World Championships

THE WOODLANDS, TX -- The John Cooper School is honored to announce that the Upper School Robotics Teams have been invited to compete in the VEX Robotics World Championship, one of the most esteemed events in student STEM competition. The championship will take place May 6–14, 2025, at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, Texas.

The annual VEX Robotics World Championship gathers the world’s top teams in three major categories—VEX IQ Robotics Competition, VEX V5 Robotics Competition, and VEX U Robotics Competition—to showcase their engineering skills, strategic thinking, and collaborative problem-solving. Students compete by designing, building, and coding robots to complete game-based engineering challenges. These competitions emphasize real-world STEM skills and promote innovation, resilience, and teamwork.

“I know the students are really looking forward to it, and I hope that the most important thing that they get out of this is that they earned it. I'm hopeful that they continue to work as a team and be as successful as they want to be.”
— Kenneth Gorman, Robotics Team Faculty Sponsor

Participation in an international event of this caliber highlights The John Cooper School’s commitment to providing a well-rounded, future-focused education that spans far beyond the classroom. From humanities to the sciences, and from athletics to the arts, Cooper equips students with the tools they need to excel in a rapidly evolving global landscape. Robotics cultivates 21st-century skills such as critical thinking, coding, engineering design, and digital literacy—empowering students for success in college and in tomorrow’s workforce.

“Getting the chance to compete at an event I’ve watched online for years—and to go head-to-head with some of the best robotics teams in the world—was surreal. It was a mix of excitement, nerves, and pride all at once.”
— Ellis Miller, ‘25, The John Cooper Robotics Team Member

The School’s participation in VEX Robotics also benefits from its faculty’s diverse expertise. Cooper educators not only teach but often serve as mentors and volunteers in a variety of competitive settings, bringing deep insight and perspective to the student experience.

Kevin Murphy, Upper School Science faculty member at The John Cooper School, joined the club meeting in April to give the Robotics team a pep talk and some insights about the competition. In the past, he served as a referee during the 2022 VEX Robotics World Championships.

“Enjoy the experience of Worlds – you are one of 800 teams across the world going to this event. Enjoy it, soak it in – you worked hard for this. This is an experience you’ll never forget!” — Kevin Murphy, The John Cooper School Faculty

The John Cooper School is an independent, non-sectarian, co-educational, college preparatory day school. The School's mission is to provide a challenging education in a caring environment to a diverse group of select students, enabling them to become critical and creative thinkers, effective communicators, responsible citizens and leaders, and lifelong learners.