What is First
• FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) is a robotics community that prepares young people for the future through a suite of inclusive, team-based robotics programs for ages 4-18 (PreK-12) that can be facilitated in school or in structured afterschool programs.
• It is boosted by a global support system of volunteers, educators, and sponsors that include over 200 of the Fortune 500 companies, teams operate under a signature set of FIRST Core Values to conduct research, fundraise, design, build, and showcase their achievements during annual challenges.
What is FTC?
• FIRST Tech Challenge is the ultimate Sport for the Mind.
• High-school student participants call it “the hardest fun you’ll ever have.”
• Under strict rules, limited time and resources, teams of students are challenged to raise funds, design a team “brand,” hone teamwork skills, and build and program industrial-size robots to play a difficult field game against like-minded competitors.
• It’s as close to real-world engineering as a student can get.
• Volunteer professional mentors lend their time and talents to guide each team.
