Team Members and mentors

Neel Rajesh

I'm currently a Senior at McLean High School, and I currently have 4 years of prior FTC experience and 6 years of FLL experience. I decided to join the team to increase my knowledge of STEM and robotics while having the opportunity to share what I have learned with the community. On our team, I work as the lead designer, a role that involves extensive use of CAD and 3D-Printing, and as a builder. I'm also passionate about swimming, reading, and technology. 

 

neil agrawal

Hi, my name is Neil. I am 17 years old, and a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and technology. This will be my fourth year doing FTC, and I did 3 years of FLL before that. An interesting fact about me is I like to snowboard and bike. I also enjoy building things, I've built a few 3D Printers now, a couple of model rockets, a CO2 car, a miniature robot made from wood modeled after the Tesla Cybertruck, and my latest project a heavy-lift drone. One reason I wanted to do FTC is so that I can learn how to build and code a robot to complete challenging tasks with tech.

Kaushik Siruvuri

I am Kaushik, a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, and live in Northern Virginia. I enjoy learning about computer science, engineering, and electronics. I also enjoy biking and spending time with my friends. I work as a programmer, and love to play around with robots and code! I love FTC because it's a great way to explore different types of engineering while also having fun.


ANTEO Jafari

Hi my name is Anteo Jafari. This is my fourth year involved with FTC. I was introduced to FTC through my friend and teammate Neel Rajesh, while he and Capital Bots were recruiting new members. I joined the team, offering CAD experience as well as 3D printing. Once I joined the team I picked up on many building roles. Outside of FTC I play tennis and football, as well as play the piano.

AAMANI Kotla

I am a 12th grade student at South Lakes High School. This is my fourth year of FTC. I was part of an FLL team for two years before this. So far it has been a great experience to be part of FTC team. I worked on designing and building our robot prototypes, as well as our team logo and team marker. I worked on our presentation for the competition and our outreach events. I look forward to learn and contribute in other areas such as programming, building, and CAD. I love to do art/craft projects and watch TV. I am also learning classical dance, piano, and tennis. I was part of a competitive jump rope team (for 5 years). I am looking forward to a successful year!


Ob Cooler-Stith 

My name is Ob, and I'm a junior at The Howard Gardner School. This is my second year doing FTC but I have been in FLL for 5 years. I'm interested in programming and video production and I like to play video games in my spare time. This year I hope to get better at Java and CAD as well as expand on my knowledge of 3D printing. Very much looking forward to this coming season!

ZAHRA Izzi

Hi, I'm Zahra, and I’m a senior at Langley High School. This is my fourth year in FTC, prior to which I did FLL for 3 years. I joined FTC because I wanted to develop my knowledge in robotics, and my experiences in FLL increased my interest in joining. I work mostly on the engineering notebook, but I also assisted our linear slides build. Other than FTC, I have many hobbies, such as playing piano and violin.


Anand Vinod

I am Anand, a senior at Langley Highschool. I have competed in FLL Tournaments for 3 years, and have done FTC for 3 years. Outside of school, I do American Computer Science League, and piano. I enjoy programming in java, and having a challenge. I hope to use my programming knowledge to complete the tasks this year, in a timely and efficient manner. 

What I love about FTC:

I like how FTC gives a real life application to what we learn in and out of school. Although it may be on a smaller scale, eventually we will use these concepts and ideas later on. It’s also very satisfying to see the robot work. 

Fun Fact: 

I play tennis in my spare time.

Mentors & Coaches

COACH RAJESH

I am Rajesh Virassamy, and I am the head coach for this team. I have over six years experience as a coach and design judge for various robotics programs including FLL, Jr FLL, and VEX Robotics.  I have been guiding the team in core engineering, especially on robotics design, build and inventory management. This is the third year for me in FTC and I am thoroughly enjoying working with this team. I have a small company and a startup that focuses on blockchain. My goal is to motivate the kids to perform beyond their potential.


coach srini

I am Srinivas Kotla, a coach/mentor for FIRST Tech Challenge team, Capital Bots 14575. This is our third season. I had also coached a FIRST Lego League team for two years. I have over 20 years of Information Technology experience, including roles with IBM, Alcatel and Cisco. I enjoy working with kids and helping them develop interest and expertise in the STEM field. I strive to promote the engineering design process to build the robots, learning and researching solutions for real world problems.