FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Kristi Holman
214-273-3703, kholman@firstintexas.org
Texas FRC Team 1477 Takes World Championship in St. Louis Woodlands, Texas Team Wins FIRST Robotics World Championship out of Thousands of Competitors
(Dallas, TX) – Thousands of students from around the world travelled to St. Louis, MO for FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) World Championship, a three-day event held at the Edward Jones Dome from April 25-27. One of the main competitions at World is the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC®) for grades 9 to 12, ages 14 to 18.
The final round of the FRC World Championship concluded on Saturday night with 25,000+ spectators watching. The Winning Alliance of the FIRST Robotics Competition Championship was Team 1241, THEORY6, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada; Team 1477, Texas Torque, The Woodlands, Texas; and Team 610, The Coyotes, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. from the Galileo Division.
In this year’s game, ULTIMATE ASCENT, two Alliances made up of three teams each try to score as many flying discs into their goals as possible during the two-minute and 15-second match. This year, 2,546 FRC teams in 17 countries participated in 77 Regional and District competitions.*
At the Opening Ceremonies, accomplished inventor and FIRST founder Dean Kamen recognized will.i.am of the pop group The Black Eyed Peas for his volunteer work with FIRST. “I’m proud to help FIRST inspire young people to pursue science and technology careers,” will.i.am said. “The experience that students gain and the values they learn in FIRST programs are crucial to creating the innovative problem solvers of tomorrow.”*
Texas students to be recognized for their accomplishments at World are Joshua Thomas of FRC Team 704, Warriors, Grand Prairie, Texas, who was one of the winners of the Dean’s List Award. Sponsored by the Texas Workforce Commission, all students of Texas FRC Teams that Qualified in a Regional Competition to compete in this year’s World Championship included: FRC Teams: 118, Clear Creek ISD; 148, Greenville HS; 2789, Manor New Tech HS; 1429, Galena Park HS; 4641, Red Oak HS; 2468, Westlake HS, 1801, Kountze HS, 3802, Prince of Peace; 2936, Dickinson; 3310, Rockwall-Heath HS; 4610, Bastrop HS; 4063, Rio High School CTE; 3997, Boy Scouts Explorer Post; 4502, Alamo College- Memorial Early College HS.
Several other U.S. and international FIRST student robotics teams earned honors for design excellence, competitive play, research, business plans, website design, teamwork, and partnerships. A not-for-profit organization founded in 1989 by inventor Dean Kamen, FIRST® inspires young people’s interest and participation in science and technology.*
*reference: US FIRST Press Release April 27, 2013
About FIRST and FIRST in Texas
FIRST® was founded in 1989 to inspire young people's interest and participation in science and technology. Based in Manchester, NH, the 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit public charity designs accessible, innovative programs that motivate young people to pursue education and career opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and math, while building self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills. FIRST®'s pipeline of programs reaches students as young as 6 years of age up until high school. Jr. FIRST Lego League, FIRST® Lego League, FIRST® Tech Challenge and the FIRST® Robotics Competition get students thinking about the issues that face the world today and how technology can fix them. For more information about FIRST®, visit www.usfirst.org.
2012-2013 Season Team Grants from FIRST in Texas Thank you Texas Workforce Commission for supporting FRC and FTC Teams in Texas:
Funding Awarded 2013:
FRC Rookie Teams - $6,500
FRC 2nd year Teams - $3,000
FRC Veteran Teams - $2,000
FTC Rookie Teams - $1,200
FTC 2nd year Teams - $650
A major function of FIRST in Texas is to connect financial sponsors interested in supporting FIRST teams in Texas with teams that meet the sponsor's target beneficiary. Each sponsor has different target beneficiaries. FIRST in Texas encourages any FIRST team to apply for funding through FIRST in Texas in order to be considered for sponsorhsip by any of FIRST in Texas' partners.
Texas based department store jcpenney has levereged its position as a FIRST strategic partner and is growing FIRST across the nation by connecting jcpenney stores to local FRC and FTC teams. Not only will these teams receive funding from jcpenney, teams will have an entire store supporting their efforts as a team partner. jcpenney has expanded its team sponsorship from 60 teams in 2010 to approximately 500 teams in 2011. Today, jcpenney sponsors more than 900 teams across the country. (updated 1/17/2012)
