Ridgeline High School: Robotics, tennis and ham radio helped Andrew Bota balance his heavy work load

Andrew Bota was excited to be starting at Ridgeline High School four years ago because he expected interesting classes. He got them, and this year he’s signed up for six Advanced Placement courses.

“I wanted to take on that challenge,” he said. “I enjoyed them better than regular classes in the past. I always try to push myself as much as I can.”

Bota was born in Seattle and spent time living in Rhode Island and Texas before moving to Liberty Lake in the sixth grade. When he started at Ridgeline, he signed up for an introduction to engineering class on a whim.

He learned how to use CAD software and his teacher in that class led the school’s robotics program. He recruited Bota to join. “That got me hooked up with a lot of things,” he said.

He has stayed in the robotics program all four years, helping build a new robot every year that had to be able to complete a specialized task. In his junior and senior years he helped design the robot. “I felt really proud of being able to do that both years,” he said.

He also signed up for tennis his freshman year because he wanted to try something new and had a couple of friends who played the sport. “It ended up being really fun,” he said.

Since then he has played varsity doubles and a mix of singles and doubles, continuing to enjoy the sport. “I’ve met a bunch of new people doing that,” he said.

He’s also a licensed amateur ham radio operator, but he doesn’t have a setup at home. Instead he can be found in local parks, climbing trees to string wire. “I like to go out to parks and just make a station and reach out to people across the country,” he said. “It’s kind of my excuse to get me outside.”

Bota has also done well in competitions, but he hasn’t always been able to go as far as his skill allowed. He’s been a member of Future Business Leaders of America and in his sophomore year he did the business plan event and qualified for Nationals but wasn’t able to go.

In his junior year, he took first place in the region for network design and computer problem solving. However, he had to skip the State competition because of robotics. Students are given a relatively short amount of time to build their robots and it’s not unusual to work until midnight some nights, Bota said.

“Robotics steals the whole fall,” he said.

Bota has worked as a courtesy clerk at the Liberty Lake Yoke’s since last June. He said he enjoys his co-workers and his time there has earned him the nickname “Bagman” among his tennis teammates. “I really enjoy it,” he said of his job. “It’s a good gig for a high schooler.”

Teacher Brandon Dailey said Bota has been doing excellent work while taking a very rigorous course load. “He is dedicated, kind and inclusive, consistently demonstrating a strong commitment to both his academics and his community,” Dailey said. “Andrew is not afraid of a challenge and approaches his goals with determination and persistence.”

Bota will attend Oregon State University, where he plans to study electrical engineering while continuing to play tennis. “They actually have a ham radio club that I will be joining when I get there,” he said.