The Pandamaniacs are the oldest high school robotics team in the Midlands, and we're excited to grow our program to serve students from across the Midlands. No matter where you go to school, we want to build with you!

You'll be doing it alongside experienced team mentors.  FIRST is unique in that it expects mentors to work alongside students for a more powerful experience.  You can read more about that relationship on the FRC Blog.  And we do think "alongside" is the best descriptor of how we work.

Season Costs

Building these robots is not cheap, and we're thankful for a lot of grant support to make this happen.  We are not charging per-student for regular meetings in 2025-26.  Our plan is to compete at three 2.5-day tournaments in other parts of South Carolina in March and April, which will mean a maximum of four hotel nights (two for North Charleston, zero for Lower Richland, two for state championship in Anderson).  Our goal is to subsidize this as much as possible; zero is a great number!

If your family or someone you know would like to donate to the team and keep costs low for everyone, visit our supporter page.

In-Season Schedule (January-April)

Our in-season schedule is Monday/Wednesday 6-9 PM, Saturday 1-6 PM.  Meetings begin January 5.  There are a few known exceptions:

• January 10 (Saturday): FIRST South Carolina Kickoff at Midlands Tech Airport (1260 Lexington Drive, West Columbia, SC 29170). Exact schedule to come, but expect to arrive in the morning and be done mid- to late-afternoon. We've got lunch covered. You'll be home for dinner.

• January 19 (Martin Luther King Jr. Day): 1-6 PM

• February 16 (Presidents Day): 1-6 PM

• Tournaments (see Important Dates To Know below)

• If Richland One closes for weather, we aren't meeting either.

• If you're sick, tired, or overloaded with homework, stay home and let us know! Our policy is "come when you can, communicate when you can't".

Meeting Location

Pandamaniacs meets at the Pandamaniacs STEM Center, located at 118 Diamond Lane Ste A Columbia SC 29210 unless otherwise announced.  This location allows for incredible access for students across the Midlands to join us:

• By car: I-20 at Broad River Road (Exit 65) is probably best, and one exit past the I-26 interchange.  You can also arrive by taking I-26/I-126 to the Bush River Road exit, though you'll need to maneuver around Dutch Square Mall.

• By transit: The STEM Center is less than a block's walk from the Dutch Square SuperStop, served by COMET routes 83L, 84, 88, and 801. These routes give amazing access across Columbia.  Visit CatchTheCOMETSC.gov for route planning assistance.

Important Dates To Know

• January 10 (Sat): FRC Kickoff, at Midlands Tech Airport. This is when we learn about the details of the 2026 game, REBUILT.  Exact schedule to come, but we'll start in the morning and everyone will be home for dinner.

• March 5-7 (Thu-Sat): FSC North Charleston Event, North Charleston Athletic Center.

  • This is the first of two official tournaments we're scheduled for. We'll play against 27 teams coming from as far away as Indiana.

  • Pits open at 5:00 PM on Thursday, so only the Friday is truly "away".  If you're in a public school, consider talking to your teachers about H3247; FIRST South Carolina and Pandamaniacs are sponsored by the SC Department of Education.

  • Load-in and inspection Thursday night, qualification matches Friday into Saturday morning, playoffs and awards Saturday afternoon.

• March 12-14 (Thu-Sat): FSC Richland Event, Lower Richland HS

  • Same format as Charleston, but a separate tournament with a different roster of teams.  This time, including teams from as far away as Massachusetts.

• March 26-28 (Thu-Sat): FSC Hartsville Event, Coker University

  • We aren't competing at this one (you only earn points towards state championship at two events), but we might send a few folks to volunteer or do a watch party.

• April 9-11 (Thu-Sat): FIRST South Carolina State Championship, Anderson Civic Center.  28 of the 40 teams in the state make the main event based on their performance in the tournaments and winning awards.  This is one more tournament for all the marbles.

  • Unlike North Charleston and Richland, this will be an all-South Carolina affair. The out-of-state teams come for practice, fun, and barbecue, but they don't earn points toward advancing to the FSC State Championship.