The 15th Annual Kansas BEST robotics competition, designed to inspire and motivate high school students toward careers in engineering, science and technology, will be held from 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 2, in Hartman Arena.

Kansas BEST is sponsored by Wichita State University’s College of Engineering.

Twenty-four schools from all areas of Kansas and one from Arkansas will compete in the Kansas BEST (Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology) event. This year's game is called “Gatekeeper.” The challenge for the students is to design a robot to construct a CPU over the course of three fabrication stages.

Students will give their robots a trial run on Practice Day from 9 a.m.-noon Saturday, Oct. 26, at Wichita State’s Heskett Center.

The sports-like technology contest combines the excitement of a high school football game with the strategy of a chess match and the intellectual challenge of a science fair. Working from identical kits, each team has had six weeks to design and build their robot.

The 2013 game includes an additional competition for the BEST Award, which goes to the team that best embodies the concept of Boosting Engineering, Science and Technology.

Event organizers anticipate that the Wichita City Council will once again sign a proclamation declaring Nov. 2 as Kansas BEST Day.

Following is the list of 25 teams competing this year: Ambassadors for Christ Academy (Bentonville, Ark.), Andale High School, Andover Central High School, Atchison High School, Campus High School, Circle High School, Council Grove High School, Derby High School, El Dorado High School, Garden City High School, Hillsboro High School, Kansas City Christian, Kapaun Mt. Carmel High School, Pike Valley High School, Remington High School, Rose Hill High School, Salina South High School, Valley Center High School, Washburn Rural High School, West Franklin High School, Wichita Collegiate High School, Wichita South High School, Wichita Southeast High School, Wichita West High School and Wichita Home School.

Winners of Kansas BEST 2013 will travel to Fort Smith, Ark., to compete in the Frontier Trails Regional Competition at the University of Arkansas Dec. 6 and 7.

Learn more about Kansas BEST.