At first glance, it looks like just another high school robotics team – wires, code, competitions, algorithms. But inside room 306 at Whitewater High School, something much bigger is being built: leadership, innovation and life-long experiences that are worth way more than trophies.
“Nine years ago, I had two seniors walk into my classroom and they asked if a robotics team could be started,” team administrator Laura Masbruch said. “After meeting with a couple teams that were already up and running and getting permission from the school board, I said ‘OK, let’s have a meeting and see who shows up.’ Forty students walked into my classroom for the meeting.”
Ferradermis is Latin for ‘iron skin,’ symbolizing the robotic and mechanical aspects [ferra] along with the personal and public side [dermis] of participating in robotics.
“When I started off on the team, I was part of our game strategy sub team, which is analyzing all of the data we intake to find the best matches for our robot along with the best way to play a match,” said Emerson Dunham, WHS senior and project manager captain. “This helped me realize that I love analyzing, seeing all the moving parts and seeing how we can change things. This kind-of led me to a general idea of where I’m going in college, but not entirely. It helped me be a bit more outgoing, be able to speak in public and be confident in the knowledge that I have and be willing to share it with others without thinking that I’m wrong.”
Ferradermis has achieved significant success in competitions. They earned the impact award for their excellence in outreach and community involvement at the Duluth, Minnesota Northern Lights Regional competition in 2024. In 2025, they won the Lake Superior Regional, earning the team sustainability award and qualifying for the FIRST Championships, often referred to as “worlds,” in Houston, Texas.
Worlds is an annual international event where student robotics teams compete. Ferradermis competed against 600 high school robotics teams from around the globe spread across eight competition fields. At the championship, they achieved their highest-ever world ranking out of the four years they have attended the event, placing 23rd out of 75 teams on the Galileo competition field.
The WHS team currently has 31 students and 20 adult mentors, with 26 students making the trip to Houston. The trip cost $50,000, with a majority of the bill being paid by community sponsors and crowdfunding efforts.
“[Worlds] was a really cool experience,” said Erison Dreksler, electrical subteam lead and robot operator. “I never really saw myself behind the driver station at all. It’s a lot of fun being the one out there controlling the robot, and I get so laser-focused on the match that I don’t really notice anything around me. The atmosphere is insane. It definitely paid off because we ended up with the highest ranking we’ve had in the four times Ferradermis has gone to worlds.”
Each member of Ferradermis leaves with something unique – a passion for teamwork, a deeper understanding of S.T.E.M. and a set of soft skills that are just as important as technical expertise.
“I told myself that I was never going to touch the robot when I first joined the team,” Dreksler said. “Obviously that didn’t happen. My freshman year alone, I ended up doing two different positions on our drive team and switching subteams. Last year, I found myself doing a lot more with presentations and community outreach along with a new position on the drive team that I’ve only had little experience with previously. This year, I’m operating our robot and I never saw myself doing that. I think it’s so cool that the team has pushed me so far out of my comfort zone and gotten me into things that I never thought I’d be doing.”
(Submitted by Ferradermis/Laura Masbruch)
At first, the WHS junior believed she wanted to pursue a writing degree during post-secondary education. However, after nearly three years on the team, Dreksler is looking towards a career in electrical engineering.
Off the competition field, team members have formed bonds that go far beyond the robot. Laughter, chatter along with the sounds of clinking tools and keyboards tapping can be heard throughout room 306 during their meeting hours. Whether the team is working on a complex problem or simply enjoying each others’ company, the atmosphere is alive with energy and camaraderie.
Ferradermis is much more than just building robots. The team’s impact extends beyond robotics, offering valuable life experiences and career preparation.
“It’s not just about robots,” Masbruch said. “Soft skills are guaranteed skills, like responsibility and public speaking. We call it ‘gracious professionalism.’ The idea is that you’re not out to win at all costs – you are out to make everybody the best they can be, so that the competition is as strong as it can be. So, if you win, you really and truly earn that win.”
For many, the true benefit isn’t the trophy at the end of the season, but the confidence and skills that the team has gained along the way. The spirit of ‘gracious professionalism’ doesn’t end when the competition does – it is something they carry with them for life.
