On Saturday, September 6, 2014 join students, families, teachers, school administrators and robotics enthusiasts for the official kick off of the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC), a national robotics competition for high school students. An exciting moment for robotics teams across the country, the kick off will include a live broadcast and national announcement of this year’s challenge. The event serves as a starting point for local and national teams who over the next five months will design and build robots to compete in championships. The Vermont FTC Championship is scheduled for “Pi Day,” 3/14/2015. This will be the third year that teams from Vermont, the Northeast and beyond converge on the University of Vermont’s Dudley H. Davis Center for the competition.

Seven Days calls the championship a “science fair on steroids”. Competing teams often have their own mascots, costumes and bling - making it a spirited event.

"The whole FIRST experience is tremendous," said Charley Thompson from CEMS. "The kids get jazzed up and the adults get pulled in."

The FIRST Tech Challenge is a robotics competition designed for students in grades 7-12 to compete head to head, using a sports model. Teams are responsible for designing, building, and programming their robots to compete in an alliance format against other teams. The robot kit is reusable from year-to-year and is programmed using a variety of languages. Teams, including coaches, mentors and volunteers, are required to develop strategy and build robots based on sound engineering principles. Awards are given for the competition as well as for community outreach, design, and other real-world accomplishments.

What: Kick Off for the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC)

When: Saturday, September 6, 2014, 11am - 1pm

Where: Billings Lecture Hall, UVM 

Who: Sponsored by UVM’s College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences
 
Cost: Free and Open to the public

Parking: Free parking in the Votey Lot (behind Billings and Ira Allen Chapel)

Contact: first@uvm.edu, (802) 656-8418