YPSILANTI, MI - Ypsilanti Community High School's robotics team is featured on an episode of HBO's "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel" set to air Tuesday, June 19.

The Grizzly robotics program has already garnered national attention, and now HBO is including the Ypsilanti teams in a feature on FIRST Robotics, which brings together teenagers from around the world to build and program robots for competition while learning practical science, technology, engineering and math skills.

"Real Sports" airs at 10 p.m. EST Tuesday on HBO and HBO Latino and at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday on HBO2. It also will be available through HBO on-demand and streaming services.

Video courtesy of HBO

The "Real Sports" episode comes as Grizzly robotics is preparing to send 11 students to China from July 22 to Aug. 3 to compete at the Zhejiang Robotics Invitational in Hangzhou, China. Only 10 international teams are invited to compete at the event, and the Ypsilanti team has currently raised $45,000 of their $50,000 goal to fund the trip.

Team 66 was originally founded in 1998 at Willow Run schools. When the former Willow Run and Ypsilanti school districts consolidated in 2013, the robotics program became an integral part of shaping the new Ypsilanti Community High School and its STEMM Middle College.

In 2016 and 2017, Team 66 won the regional Chairman's Award at the Michigan State Championships, the top honor in FIRST Robotics reserved for teams that best represent a model for other teams and embody the goals of FIRST.

In a video prepared as part of the Chairman's Award application process, students talk about how robotics has opened the door to college classes and helped them to focus and perform better in school.

"We've found it really isn't just about the robots. It really is about how to engage the students so they are present," said D. Scott Heister, lead mentor for Grizzly robotics and director of Ypsilanti's STEMM Middle College, in the Chairman's Award video.

This season, Team 66 won a Chairman's Award at the district level, and Heister won the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award at the state championship. Students nominate their coaches for the Woodie Flowers award, which recognizes mentors who do an outstanding job of motivating students.

The team also was highlighted in a special showcase presentation at the FIRST World Championship.

Video courtesy of D. Scott Heister / Grizzly Robotics