The World’s Leading Youth Serving Non-Profit Advancing STEM Education
INSPIRING YOUNG PEOPLE FOR 36 YEARS
FIRST® inspires young people to be science and technology leaders and innovators, as well as well rounded contributors to society, by engaging them in exciting mentor-based, research and robotics programs.
MORE THAN ROBOTS.
“The robots are a vehicle for students to learn important life skills.
Kids often come in not knowing what to expect – of the program nor of themselves. They leave with a vision, with confidence and with a sense that they can create their own future.”
– FOUNDER, DEAN KAMEN
Programs
A Suite of Hands-On STEM Programs for Every Age
Project-based, hands-on FIRST programs introduce students to engineering and coding in engaging, inclusive, and creative learning environments, where students work collaboratively to solve themed robotics challenges.
Because our programs are More Than Robots®, participants are guided by FIRST Core Values to build a better future.
Through a progression of team-based robotics challenges, FIRST helps young people discover a passion for STEM and develop the skills they’ll need to succeed in today’s competitive workforce.
FIRST LEGO League introduces STEM to children through fun, exciting hands-on learning. Participants gain real-world problem-solving experiences through a guided, global robotics program, helping today’s students and teachers build a better future together.
FIRST LEGO League’s three divisions inspire youth to experiment and grow their critical thinking, coding, and design skills through hands-on STEM learning and robotics.
FIRST Tech Challenge students learn to think like engineers. Teams design, build, and program robots to compete in an alliance format against other teams. Robots are built from a reusable platform, powered by android technology, and can be coded using a variety of levels of Java-based programming.
FIRST Robotics Competition teams design, program, and build a robot starting with a standard kit of parts and common set of rules to play in a themed head-to-head challenge. Teams also build a brand, develop community partnerships for support, and work to promote STEM in their local community.
IN CALIFORNIA
STUDENTS
TEAMS
VOLUNTEERS
IN 110+ COUNTRIES
STUDENTS
EVENTS
VOLUNTEER HOURS
2024 – 2025 SEASON THEME
FIRST DIVE presented by Qualcomm
The ocean is more than what you can see on the horizon. Beneath the surface lies our planet’s most complex ecosystems, full of life and potential for exploration and learning, where each inhabitant has a role to play in building a thriving environment.
During the 2024- 2025 FIRST season, FIRST DIVE presented by Qualcomm, teams will use their STEM and collaboration skills to explore life beneath the surface of the ocean. Along the way, we’ll uncover the potential in each of us to strengthen our community and innovate for a better world with healthy oceans. Join us as we explore the future.
"“We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.”
- Franklin D. RooseveltTOP SPONSORS
Thank You To Our Top California Sponsors
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