Hello Teams and Volunteers,
Welcome to Pennsylvania FIRST Robotics fourth email blast of the 2024-2025 Season! The new overall theme for all programs is FIRST DIVE presented by Qualcomm. The variation on that theme for FTC is INTO THE DEEP, once again proudly presented by RTX and launching September 7, 2024.
This first 3 email blasts this season were dedicated to new season and live kickoff registration. As always, previous emails can be found on our website in the COMMUNICATION Archives.
https://www.ftcpenn.org/communications
Kickoff Registrations:
Once again, we are happy to announce that we have arranged for “live” and in-person fields at 5 locations in the state! The Team Powered events will host other FIRST Tech Challenge teams from within their region. This is in addition to the Virtual broadcast we are planning that can be attended by all teams and will also be webcast to the in-person events. Registration has been sparse so far but it is still early, so please be sure to register ASAP. Full teams, students, coaches and parents are welcome. Please note that FTC Teams do not need to be fully registered with FIRST HQ to attend kickoff events, but please ID your current team number and/or name on the forms.
We detailed the kickoff locations and agendas in our last email blast, but please visit our website for the comprehensive list which includes locations and agendas
https://www.ftcpenn.org/ftc-events/2024-2025-season
Kickoff Registration:
https://www.ftcpenn.org/event-registration
Coaches Calls:
Also, as a reminder, we will be holding Coaches Calls on two consecutive Wednesday’s Sep 11th and 18th, 2024. Registration not required. We may also carry on with monthly Coaches Calls throughout the season as well.
Grant Opportunities
We are pleased to announce that Pennsylvania FIRST Robotics is honored to have been selected to administer two grant programs and opportunities for PA teams on behalf of FIRST Inspires and their national sponsors. Please see below the details of the Google.org and Arconic Foundation Grants. Applications for these grants will be communicated and posted later this month, but we wanted to give FLL, FTC And FRC teams in the PA region a heads-up in consideration of these opportunities to start and sustain FTC teams in Pennsylvania.
Google.org Grant:
Google.org is the philanthropic organization established within Google that funds education, economic development, and digital literacy related projects in a number of regions. Their mission is to apply Google’s innovation, research, and resources to promote progress and expand opportunity for everyone. Some of you may have heard of Google.org commitment to robotics programs overall, but their commitment is also solid in Pennsylvania. We are the proud, humbled and thrilled recipients with intent to administer this funding offering the benefits to the FIRST Robotics Community in PA.
https://blog.google/outreach-initiatives/google-org/google-grants-robotics-ai-education/
The priority of the program for schools and organizations is to reduce barriers and increase FIRST Tech Challenge participation of middle school-aged students who are under-resourced or have been traditionally underrepresented in STEM.
Criteria for award:
- Significantly, over 50% of the team shall be middle school age students, AND
- 50% or more of the team meets one or more of the following criteria:
- 50% or more underrepresented in STEM which includes Hispanic/Latinx, Black/African American, and Indigenous youth
- 50% or more Female
- 50% or more underserved based on low income. In the U.S. this is based on the % eligible for free and reduced lunch for the school or non-profit overall.
- Students are in a Title 1 school.
- Students in rural areas. Reference the Pennsylvania “Urban-Centric and Metro-Centric Locale Codes” excel document as found at:
The funds are provided by a Google.org grant and are administered by Pennsylvania FIRST Robotics who will be directing these funds to newly registered, rookie FIRST Tech Challenge teams with a sum of $4,000 per team.
This grant is open to Pennsylvania FIRST® Tech Challenge Competition teams for the 2024-2025 season. This opportunity will be offered to existing FLL, FTC and FRC teams who are considering or intend to embark on expanding their footprint into the FTC program at the Middle School aged level.
An online application will be published shortly for consideration of an organizations or team’s proposal. Applications will be vetted to assure the criteria detailed above is met and we will ask for specific demographics. Applications will be accepted on a first-come-first served basis and will be available until the funding is exhausted.
Additionally, we expect the applicants to sign and adhere to an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) as a commitment to utilize the funds as intended. We expect to be able to offer this opportunity next season as well due to the commitment of and by Google.org.
Teams/organizations/schools accepting this grant will eventually provide a summary report of how it is utilized which may include:
- Registration, Robot and Event Expenses as summarized in FIRST® Tech Challenge Sample Team Budget
- Holistic support such as: food, transportation, product, registration, teacher support, technology, workshops, multiple competition plays, etc.
- This is important as Google understands that the more students can compete and learn from other teams, the more inspired they’ll be.
- It is highly encouraged that new coaches seek, finance and receive FIRST® Tech Challenge Professional Development opportunities as part of these grant expenditures.
- Other uses (please specify in a separate document)
Once again, we will let you know when the application process is open and thank you for your consideration.
Arconic Foundation Grant:
Arconic Foundation partners with nonprofit and community organizations to strengthen its communities by enhancing education through skill-building learning experiences, promoting environmental sustainability, and advancing social equity. Arconic Foundation is independently endowed and invests in the communities of Arconic Corporation. There are 10 Arconic focused communities identified by PA counties detailed below.
Grant Requirements:
Awarded Teams must be registered with FIRST® and hold a permanent team number.
Awarded Teams must be participating on a FIRST® competition team for the current 2024-25 season.
Awarded Teams must be located within one of the following 10 counties:
Allegheny, Berks, Butler, Columbia, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Montour, York, and Westmoreland
This grant will be awarded as follows:
- FIRST® Tech Challenge (Rookie) – $1,500
- FIRST® Tech Challenge (Veteran) – $1,000
This funding is unrestricted for the purpose of holistic team support; food, transportation, product, registration, teacher support, technology, multiple competition plays, etc.
Teams will recognize the Arconic Foundation as a team sponsor in a manner consistent with the recognition of your other team sponsor organizations or individuals. If feasible, please employ the Arconic Foundation Logo, the image for which can be obtained from the following website (a separate file can be provided by PFR on request)
https://www.cee.org/opportunities/sponsors/arconic-foundation
Again, we will have an application process that will be communicated shortly and in the month of August.
Sincerely,
Tom Zawislak and the FTC PA Team
Pennsylvania FIRST® Robotics
FIRST Tech Challenge® Program Delivery Partner
phone: (302) 383-9925
email: ftc@pennfirst.org
Website: www.FTCPenn.org