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Being First With “FIRST®”: BAE Systems Commits to Provide $2.18 Million and
Sponsors 181 Teams in 2010 For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and
Technology (FIRST)
ARLINGTON, Va., Feb 12, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- 181 BAE Systems-sponsored teams
across the United States and in Brazil, Chile and Bosnia are hard at work on
their construction of robots for this year’s For Inspiration and Recognition of
Science and Technology (FIRST®) competitions. As a Strategic Partner of FIRST,
BAE Systems has committed to provide $2.18 million in 2010, and is also
sponsoring 14 regional competitions.
“Our contribution to FIRST is not only about getting young people excited about
science and technology, it is also about developing our future workforce,” said
Doug Coffey, BAE Systems vice president and coordinator of the company’s FIRST
partnership. “As a strategic partner, we see students benefiting from an
experience that teaches teamwork and innovation, we see our local communities
coming together to help young people learn, and we see our young employees
developing leadership skills by mentoring a FIRST team. It’s a win, win, win for
us.”
The company is sponsoring the regional competitions in New Hampshire (the BAE
Systems Granite State Regional); Baltimore, Md. (the Chesapeake Regional);
Washington, D.C. (the D.C. Regional); Richmond, Va.; Long Island, N.Y.; Detroit,
Mich.; Minneapolis, Minn.; Phoenix, Ariz.; San Diego, Calif.; Silicon Valley
(California); the Hawaii Regional; Texas (the Lone Star Regional) and the
Championship being held in Atlanta at the Georgia Dome April 15-17.
“Ten years from today, one of these students is going to be out in the world
having done something extraordinary for a major, global problem,” said Dean
Kamen, FIRST Founder, as he explained how what students learn from FIRST is very
different from other sports.
“Since BAE Systems has become involved with our FIRST team our entire school
community has become aware of the need for better engineering programs within
our curriculum,” said Lonny Weissman, mathematics teacher, Pioneer High School
in San Jose, Calif. “To that end, we have been able to go from having an
extracurricular robotics program to providing two curriculum classes of Science
and Engineering Technology focused on robotics for the school year 2009/2010. We
will be expanding that to four classes in the 2010/2011 school year of which two
will be Computer Science/CAD classes. We have a greater focus and interest in
STEM education, which without BAE Systems would not have been possible.”
“FIRST Robotics gives students an enhanced perspective on future educational and
career choices. Regardless of their ultimate career decision, participants learn
valuable life lessons about team work, leadership, planning, and initiative. The
support of BAE Systems is essential to the continued success of our robotics
program at Oakton, Va., High School,” said Chuck Harris, President, Telford
Technologies and lead FIRST mentor.
What started out as support to a FIRST team out of a company workshop in 1991
has steadily grown in support to become a Strategic Partner of FIRST in 2008.
Hundreds of company employees have volunteered to serve as mentors, coaches,
judges, regional competition chairpersons, and event coordinators for FIRST and
other Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programs. “More
than a dozen of our employees developed their interest in engineering through
FIRST, and now they are mentors to students involved in FIRST,” said Coffey.
About FIRST
The mission of FIRST is to inspire young people to be science and technology
leaders, by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science,
engineering and technology skills, that inspire innovation, and that foster
well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication, and
leadership.
Accomplished inventor Dean Kamen founded FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition
of Science and Technology) in 1989 to inspire an appreciation of science and
technology in young people. Based in Manchester, N.H., FIRST designs accessible,
innovative programs to build self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills while
motivating young people to pursue opportunities in science, technology, and
engineering. With support from three out of every five Fortune 500 companies and
nearly $12 million in college scholarships, the not-for-profit organization
hosts the FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC®) and FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC®)
for high-school students, FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL®) for 9 to 14-year-olds, (9
to 16-year-olds outside the U.S. and Canada) and Junior FIRST® LEGO® League
(Jr.FLL) for 6 to 9-year-olds. Gracious Professionalism™ is a way of doing
things that encourages high-quality work, emphasizes the value of others, and
respects individuals and the community. To learn more about FIRST, go to
www.usfirst.org.
About BAE Systems
BAE Systems is the premier global defense, security and aerospace company
delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces,
as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and
customer support services. With approximately 105,000 employees worldwide, BAE
Systems’ sales exceeded GBP 18.5 billion (US $34.4 billion) in 2008.
FIRST® is a registered trademark of the United States Foundation for Inspiration
and Recognition of Science and Technology (US FIRST).
LEGO® is a registered trademark of The LEGO Group.
SOURCE: BAE Systems
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