/ About the team
A working engineering program in a public high school.
Team Berkelium 5419 has competed in the FIRST Robotics Competition out of Berkeley High School since 2014. We operate as a student-led organization with two pillars: Technical and Business & Operations.
What we stand for.
Engineering with humility
Robots fail. Code breaks. We document what went wrong, fix it, and ship the next iteration.
Gracious Professionalism
FIRST's guiding principle, and ours. We lend tools, share spare parts, and help other teams in the pits before we help ourselves.
Accessible by design
Most members joined with no prior experience. Training, mentorship, and need-based travel scholarships are built into the program.
0 teams. One Berkelium.
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Team structure is being set up.
Join us
We meet after school in the Berkeley High Engineering shop. Prospective members are always welcome.
A snapshot of the program.
100%
Graduation rate
95%
Pursue STEM majors
45%
Identify as BIPOC
34%
Identify as non-male
25%
Identify as low-income
21
Middle school robotics teams founded
What the program has earned.
2026
District Engineering Inspiration Award
CA District East Bay Event
Our biggest honor yet — recognised for outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering across Berkeley and the wider East Bay.
From elementary school to varsity.
Founded in 2015, Berkelium is open to any Berkeley High student at any time — no applications, no cuts, and no fees. We have provided over $20,000 in scholarships in the past three years so cost never blocks participation. Elementary students meet engineering through our free VEX workshops at Berkeley Public Libraries, middle schoolers compete on FIRST LEGO League teams at all three public middle schools, and underclassmen build their skills on our JV team, Bearium 5499, before moving up to varsity.