FIRST Technology Challenge

Hey there FTC ! This is Michelle Long again from the FIRST Scholarship Program . It’s that time of year again to start thinking about the FIRST Scholarship Program and life after FTC. Photo courtesy of Scott Nichols and The Webb School . First of all, check out last year’s FTC FIRST Scholarship Program blog post - all of that information is still accurate. Also check out the FTC Google Hangout that we had last winter with Timm Huffman and Kate Caulfield at Olin College of Engineering: again LOTS of good information. The FIRST Scholarship webpage is THE place to go for information on all FIRST Scholarships. We are currently in the middle of renewing last year’s scholarships and developing new ones for the year- we anticipate the new 2015 Scholarship Program going live in early September. The other program that I wanted to talk to you about is the FIRST Alumni Program- actually the FIRST Alumni Program s ! We’re revving up our Alumni initiatives and developing programming to offer ...

The FIRST Tech Challenge Game Manual comes in two parts. Part I includes tournament information, awards, and robot rules. Part II covers the game and game rules. Part I for the 2014-2015 season is now available. All Teams should review the manual carefully to ensure a successful season. Any questions that might arise should be posted on the FIRST Tech Challenge forum . This year's Manual looks much like last years, but teams should do a thorough review of allowed parts, which change from year to year. In addition, there are two significant changes in this year's manual: The Control Award is now an official award and part of tournament advancement criteria The Advancement Criteria has been modified With less than two months to Kick-Off, we hope the Game Manual Part I has fueled your enthusiasm for the season ahead. Good luck Teams!

Café Bot’s International Friendships Over the Years  By Brandon Sanders, Cafe Bots Member, FIRST Tech Challenge Team #4982 One of our very favorite things about our participation in the FIRST program has been the opportunities we’ve had to meet, connect and develop friendships with various FIRST teams from all around the globe.    For us, the International Exchange program began years ago.   In 2012, we asked our local Missouri partner if we could host an international FIRST Tech Challenge team that was visiting during the 2012 FIRST World Championship – our request was met with enthusiasm, and we were connected with Team Expedio from Singapore.   We would go on to develop a very strong and enduring friendship. We started out with an awkward first Skype three weeks before they were due to arrive in America; I was admittedly quite shy at the time.   We exchanged our names, our interests and, of course, our robots.  Things became less awkward as we...