PATH To Domination, The Pathway School’s robotics team, was formed in the summer of 2022 as part of Pathway’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) programming. Mr. Quijas, Pathway’s STEM Coordinator, leads the team, along with other program staff, in conjunction with Pathway’s robotics classes. The team provides special education students with the same opportunities for competition and learning that are available to neurotypical students.
The robotics team competes in the FIRST Mid-Atlantic Robotics Competition. Our inaugural team in 2023 won their first competition in a FIRST Mid-Atlantic district event and also received the Rookie All-Inspiration Award. In their second district competition, the team qualified for the District Championship hosted in Bethlehem, PA and received a Rookie All-Star Award. This award celebrates the rookie team that exemplifies a young but strong partnership while adopting the mission of FIRST Robotics to encourage students to learn more about science and technology. Qualifying for the District Championship was one of the team’s goals for their inaugural season, and they finished their season strong as one of the only special education teams to compete at this event.
The team meets daily to learn about robotics, build and modify the competition robot, and focus on teamwork, team building, collaboration, and developing social skills. The team also works together on strategy and fundraising for the team. Robotics competitions are about more than just scoring points; they’re about learning, building alliances with other school’s teams, working within a community, and so much more.
The 2024 season is underway and began with a win! PATH To Domination placed first at the FMA District Hatboro-Horsham event for the second year in a row. With their combined points from the Hatboro-Horsham competition and their second match at Bensalem High School, the team qualified for the District Championship at Lehigh University! They compete at Lehigh from April 3-6. 
Thank you to our 2023 supporters and sponsors of the team and program including the Gene Haas Foundation, BAE Systems, Boeing, DOW, NASA, Corbett Inc., and several private donors. We are currently looking for sponsors for the 2024 season. Sponsorships help pay for team supplies, competition registration fees, travel expenses, and more. If interested in becoming a sponsor, contact jbarrad@nightowlprod.net.
For more information, email communications@nightowlprod.net or click here to visit the team website!