FIRST Robotics Competition
-Steve Sanghi, President of Microchip Technology, Inc.
To students in the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC), FIRST is much more than a mere acronym. FIRST Robotics provides high school students the opportunity needed to come together and make a profound impact on themselves, each other, and their communities. Along with a deep understanding of the varying aspects of an engineering corporation, FIRST Robotics allows teams to be exposed to business management as well. FIRST Robotics encourages students to spread the message of FIRST to the community and expects its teams to fundraise finances for the program annually. These expectations allow the students in FIRST Robotics to reach out to the community and create partnerships with large corporations, creating a broad idea of what engineers do.
Six weeks out of the year for FIRST Robotics students is dedicated to the building of a robot according to the competition guidelines given by FIRST. Every year, a new game is created to challenge student's creativity and intellect, improved throughout the year. These six weeks show the dedication and appreciation of students to the FIRST Robotics. The students work very hard, with little time to spare, creating a robot in hopes of championship. Colleges, universities, corporations, businesses, and individuals provide many scholarships to FIRST Robotics participants because they know these students have special experience in the engineering fields.
Another fundamental aspect of FIRST is its community outreach. The main goal of FIRST is to integrate math and science into the daily lives of the community. Students mentor everyone from young students to adults. The six weeks of the building season is also the time for the Chairman submission and award. This submission will show what each team has done throughout the year and how they have influenced the world around them.
FIRST Robotics not only teaches its student the varying aspects of an engineering corporation, it allows them to experience teamwork, create partnerships with sponsorships, make an impact in their society, and become well-rounded individuals.
