Des Plaines, Ill. (Dec. 5, 2025) – Houston, we have incredible news. Oakton College’s Lunabotics Team just launched itself to first place nationwide. The team earned a ticket to the 2026 NASA Lunabotics Challenge thanks to a project management plan that was truly out of this world.
Oakton ranked No. 1 in the nation for its project management plan (PMP), surpassing 73 schools that applied to participate in this year’s competition. Only 50 teams were selected to advance, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).
“It’s a really good feeling,” said student team member Rhys Bangeman, a Maine South High School graduate. “Some people initially scoffed at the idea of a community college competing in Lunabotics. Oakton had placed second overall since then, and now we’ve earned this new recognition. It shows that community college students can surprise four-year universities and even impress NASA. We have some incredibly bright students here.”
Oakton has competed in the NASA Lunabotics Challenge since 2012 and earned a second-place national finish in 2016. This year’s recognition marks a significant milestone since the program returned to Oakton after a two-year pause, requiring the team to rebuild its project from the ground up.
“I want to congratulate the Oakton Lunabotics team and Engineering instructor Andrew Eloff on this stellar accomplishment,” said Jim Rabchuk, Oakton’s Dean of STEM. “This recognition highlights the innovation, talent and dedication of our students. To compete against major research universities and place number one shows that community college students not only belong in the nation's top engineering competitions — they excel."
The Lunabotics Challenge tasks college teams with designing, building and programming an autonomous robot capable of excavating and transporting lunar regolith (moon dust). Oakton students have spent months developing their mechanical prototype, drafting early software designs, and preparing documentation that adheres to NASA’s rigorous systems engineering standards.
“We were honestly surprised and incredibly encouraged to stay motivated,” said team member Jonas Ceviker, Evanston Township High School graduate, noting that many students joined with little or no robotics experience. “Getting the top score shows that if you’re willing to put in the work, you can accomplish something big.”
“All you really need is curiosity,” added team member Vivian Molina Sumba, a Maine East High School graduate. “You do not have to be an Engineering major to do this. I had never built anything, not even drilled anything, when I started. However, keeping an open mind to new things allowed me to learn a lot. Anybody can be part of this if they’re willing to learn.”
Working through specialized subsystem groups, mechanical, electrical, software and documentation, the team manages the project’s complexity while meeting NASA’s project milestones. Their next major submission, the Systems Engineering Paper, is due April 2.
Oakton will travel to the University of Central Florida for the first phase of competition, May 12–17. The top 10 teams will then advance to compete at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Artemis Arena, May 19–21.
If you are interested in joining Oakton’s Lunabotics team, please reach out to Emily Eagan Rowe, interim department chair (eeaganrowe@oakton.edu). No prior engineering experience is required.