The
FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition is a national contest founded by Dean Kamen. The FIRST Robotics program included over 32,500 high school students on 1307 teams at 37 regional events throughout the US, the UK, the Netherlands, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Israel. The competitions are high-tech spectator sporting events; the result of lots of focused brainstorming, real-world teamwork, dedicated mentoring, project timelines, and deadlines. It is an opportunity for the students from high schools to work closely with engineers and business professionals from local businesses to get a hands-on, inside look at the real-world competitive environment. The six weeks after the game is unvieled, students and engineers work together to brainstorm, design, construct and test their "champion robot". No two years is this expierience the same because each year the game is different from the last. The teams then compete in a spirited, no-holds-barred tournament complete with referees, cheerleaders and time clocks. To learn more about this nation-wide program please go to
www.usfirst.org.
The partnerships developed between Avon High School and businesses provide expieriences that will help in real world situations. The result is a fun, exciting and stimulating environment in which all participants discover the important connection between classroom lessons and real world applications.
One of the most important things to remember about
FIRST is that there is much more than meets the eye. Asquoted by one of our dear Illumni, "it's not just about building a robot, it's about building a team." At this year's Kickoff Event, Dean Kamen reminded us that
FIRST Robotics means a lot more than just building a robot and driving it in a competition, but it’s about the experience behind it; the learning, the teamwork, the friendship, and the fun that comes with it. The principle of "gracious professionalism" is also an important part of
FIRST- gracious professionalism is acting respectfully towards others, and willing to lend a hand, while still competing at your highest.
Information on the 2010 game, Breakaway, is available on our Team History Game Pages, found
here.
