More than 20,000 students from schools across the state recently packed for Rupp Arena in Lexington.

It wasn't for a sports tournament, although it sounded like it.

These students were there to celebrate their academic achievements.

Kelsey Starks takes us to the SDLP State Championship and today's education news.

SDLP stands for the Student Technology Leadership Program.

And for 30 years now, students have been gathering from all over the state to show off their talents, but also their excitement for learning.

It is an everyday use and students this excited about academics.

It blows me away to be here because I don't think I've ever seen so many people my own age have all of this amazing technology in the room.

They are computational thinkers, knowledge, constructors and creative communicators all filling up the arena to share their ideas.

This is the largest single day event that the Central Bank Center and Rupp Arena have.

We take up more space than anything else they have on a single day, and that says a lot because, you know, just last week we had the Boys Sweet 16 here.

We had 13,000 and here we have 21,000 here today.

This breaks down those barriers to say, you know what, I can do that.

I can do anything.

And I tell them this and it's true.

If they're one of the best in Kentucky, that makes them one of the best in the nation, because our technology program is the pioneer and as a leader, most aspects of education technology.

Kentucky was the first state to connect schools across the Commonwealth to the Internet back in 1994.

Since then, the Kentucky Department of Education has sponsored SDLP as a way for students to showcase what they've learned and what they've created using technology.

Our project is cleaning up the Ohio River using robots.

We decided to come here to show off what we think is a very important issue.

We can, you know, outreach to other people who share a very similar common interest, which is like robotics and engineering or coding.

And, you know, we can share these ideas with each other and all come together.

The projects range from elaborate coding to photography, art and media, all solving problems with an emphasis on teamwork and leadership.

Every single community at Southside collaborated.

We had welding, carpentry, culinary, EMR, EMT, English, mathematics.

Everyone collaborated.

Carpentry, built the frame of it, electrical, did all the wiring.

I actually designed the turning mechanism here to turn the Grange back and forth.

So every product, everything that a kid or a group of students as a team makes it, it's woven with high quality academic standards.

And so, like, that's that's a core part of it.

When you watch students making and creating, you kind of forget about that for a bit, but it's at a super high bar level that that we're excited about.

And so it is a very unique program.

We've actually worked with other states to start to launch similar programs.

But so far, Kentucky, we continue to lead the way.

Well, I.

Just really wanted to be in the program and still P stands for Student Technology Leadership Program.

And I wanted to be a leader for the kids under my grade and the kids in my grade.

Well, I've learned that helping others is the most important thing you can do in life, because when you help others, it makes you feel good and worthy of being.

And I still.

Think our future is absolutely bright, no question.

For Kentucky Edition, I'm Kelsey Starks.

The Student Technology Leadership Program Competition is open to all students, kindergarten through 12th grade in Kentucky.