FIRST is an acronym for “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology”. FIRST was started was started in 1992 by inventor Dean Kamen in a high school gymnasium with 28 teams. The FIRST Robotics Competition is an exciting, multinational competition that teams professionals with students to solve an engineering design problem in an powerful and competitive way. The program is a life-changing, career-molding experience and a lot of fun.

It starts with a six week challenge in January and February to build a robot that competes in a game that is given out at the beginning of the competition. In March we travel to regional competitions where we compete with teams from the local area, and sometimes with teams from around the world. From there, we move to the championship held in the Georgia Dome, Atlanta Georgia with more then 10,000 students, 344 teams, and six playing fields.

In 2009, the competition will reach over 42,000 high-school-aged young people on over 1,600 teams in 40 regional events. Teams come from Brazil, Canada, Ecuador, Israel, Mexico, the U.K., and almost every U.S. state. The competitions are high-tech spectator sporting events, the result of lots of focused brainstorming, real-world teamwork, dedicated mentoring, project timelines, and deadlines.

FIRST aims to get high school students excited about engineering and science. Paired up with engineers the high schoolers see them in a new light, the engineers are raised to a celebrity status, complete with autographs.

The FIRST organization does not stop there however. FIRST runs competitions for students age 6 to 18 with programs like Jr. FIRST Lego League, FIRST Lego League and the FIRST Tech Challenge. Together these programs reach over 150,000 students in over 40 different countries. There is no denying that FIRST is changing the way kids think about technology and how they view the world. In total, FIRST brings together almost a quarter of a million people with one common goal. To change how we view science and technology.

To learn more about the FIRST Foundation, visit their website at www.usfirst.org.

Taken from www.usfirst.org.