[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 93 (Tuesday, June 4, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E709-E710]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             GIRLS OF STEEL

                                  _____
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL F. DOYLE

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 4, 2019

  Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, I rise today to 
commend the Girls of Steel Robotics team for qualifying for the FIRST 
World Championship for the 9th year in a row. They received a Wildcard 
slot as a Regional Finalist, and they also won the Gracious 
Professionalism award at the 2019 Greater Pittsburgh Regional 
FIRST Robotics Competition in California, PA. Gracious 
Professionalism celebrates outstanding demonstration of FIRST 
Core Values by working together both on and off the playing field.
  The students are proud that their robot qualified them to attend the 
FIRST World Championship, which has been held in Detroit since 2018. I 
think that the remarkable accomplishment of continuously making it to 
the Championship speaks volumes about the dedication these young women 
have in pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) 
careers, sustaining their team, and spending thousands of hours 
collectively doing outreach in the community. Girls of Steel are often 
referred to as the home-town favorite robotics group and continue to be 
featured in videos, print media, and blog posts.
  The Girls of Steel attended the FIRST World Championship in Detroit, 
Michigan at the end of April--one of the largest competitions of its 
kind, sometimes referred to as the Super Bowl of Smarts--where they 
competed against top teams from all over the world.
  FIRST, which stands for ``For Inspiration and Recognition of Science 
and Technology,'' is an organization dedicated to engaging our students 
in STEM fields. Hundreds of thousands of students gain practical, team-
based engineering experiences through FIRST every year.
  As a founder and co-chair of the Congressional Robotics Caucus, I 
believe competitions like these are important opportunities for our 
young people to explore potential careers in STEM. I've witnessed 
firsthand the incredible economic growth and development that these 
fields have brought to my home district, and I strongly believe that 
these fields are crucial to our nation's future prosperity.
  The FIRST Robotics Competition allows students to apply creativity 
and critical thinking in the demanding and competitive field of 
robotics, all while instilling a strong sense of pride

[[Page E710]]

in participants. I want to commend organizations like FIRST for their 
important work encouraging young people in these pursuits.
  Sixty-seven young women from 8th through 12th grades associated with 
more than 20 schools located in and around the City of Pittsburgh 
represent this year's Girls of Steel team, and in recognition of their 
hard work, intelligence, and teamwork, I would like to mention each of 
these inspiring young ladies by name. They are: Alexandria Adams, Aeryn 
Anderson, Ciara Anderson, Anjali Angal, Ariella Avigad, Somdatta Basu, 
Meghna Behari, Justine Bennett, Ashnaa Bhide, Gracie Cain, Rosy Chen, 
Maya Cranor, Elizabeth Crookston, Claire Cummings, Isha Das, Maggie 
Davis, Haruka Doi, Riley Doyle, Anna Fedele, Alexandra George, Susanna 
Getty, Teadora Gildengers, Samhita Gudapati, Sofia Heller, Kristina 
Hilko, Amanda Hulver, Anna Jablonowski, Caroline Kenney, Janise Kim, 
Isabelle Kowenhoven, Mary Laird, Alice Liu, Sally Liu, Eve Mango, 
Alisha Mattson, Lauren Michaels, Abigail Miller-Peterson, Sreyashi 
Mandal, Lakshmi Mulgund, Abbey Murcek, Anna Nesbitt, Jimin Oh, Norah 
Ostin, Ariana Pasquella, Lehka Pendyala, Emma Prokop, Grace Raida, 
Lauren Raida, Ananya Rao, Sedona Rocher, Rachel Sadeh, Brittany Sadej, 
Swathi Senthil, Vivian Shao, Lauren Shovlin, Kavya Soman, Aditi 
Srivastava, Anna Staresinic, Tara Staresinic, Aditri Thakur, Langley 
Turcsanyi, Prishti Tyagi, Anja Vogt, Zoe Woon, Ziya Xu, Julia Young, 
and Qingqing Zhao.
  Additionally, I want to convey my deep appreciation to the faculty 
and staff of Carnegie Mellon University's Field Robotics Center, who 
have mentored the Girls of Steel since 2010. Because of their efforts, 
more young women have experienced real-world technological challenges 
and learned from some of the nation's best at solving these problems. 
These experiences will certainly benefit these young women in the 
future.
  I congratulate the Girls of Steel and wish them all continued success 
in their academic and professional endeavors.

                          ____________________