FIRST Robotics

A number of years back, celebrated inventor Dean Kamen founded the not-for-profit organization FIRST (For the Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), with the lofty goal of inspiring young people to delve into the world of science, technology, engineering and math.

Dean and his fellow techies knew that getting kids excited about science and technology needed to go beyond the classroom (really, how many  kids read their math textbooks for fun?) and get them involved in a hands-on project.  And so, robotics competitions were born.

Every year, thousands of students, grades kindergarten through 12,  participate in FIRST robotic challenges!  The programs are designed to be accessible and innovative while building self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills.

Photos found on the FIRST Photo Gallery.

Canyon Crest Academy is a FIRST Robotics Competition Team.  There are approximately 1700 active competition teams in the world today, involving more than 70,000 high school students.  These teams compete at 45 regional competitions and the national championships in Atlanta, Georgia. Each year, FIRST creates a new competition game and teams have only six weeks to design, build, program and test their robot before they ship it off to the competition.

The organization is supported by three out of every five Fortune 500 companies and nearly $12 million in college scholarships.

FIRST encourages students at all levels to be involved with and offers the following programs: FIRST ® Robotics Competition (FRC®) and FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC®) for high-school students, FIRST® LEGO®League (FLL®) for 9 to 14-year-olds, (9 to 16-year-olds outside the U.S. and Canada) and Junior FIRST® LEGO® League (Jr.FLL) for 6 to 9-year-olds.

All the while students are learning, building and competing, they practice Gracious Professionalism™ which is a way of doing things that encourages high-quality work, emphasizes the value of others, and respects individuals and the community. To learn more about FIRST, go to www.usfirst.org.