What is FIRST?

More than 460,000 young people participate in FIRST teams worldwide each year. Learn more about FIRST programs for students in kindergarten-high school on the FIRST Inspires website. It has many valuable resources to tell you about the organization at all levels, including the ongoing longitudinal study by Brandeis University about the value of its programs for young people. Blue Cheese Robotics competes in the FIRST Chesapeake District. They are based in Midlothian, VA, and have their website.

In addition to providing opportunities to learn about STEM in a hands-on, thrilling competitive environment, FIRST partners with about 200 universities and private employers to help students score more than $30 million in scholarships annually. Make sure to check out their scholarship resources page.

The FIRST Robotics Competition introduces a new challenge for students each year at the beginning of January. We had a fantastic run with our robot, "American," playing FIRST Stronghold in 2016. Being part of the World Championship-winning alliance is a thrill our team will never forget.

During the summer and fall, we will participate in the National Advocacy Conference, attend two off-season events, staff LEGO robotics camps, teach CAD skills to our students, and do robot demos in our community.