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Algonquin Robotics Team Wins Prestigious FIRST Robotics Award

T-Hawks have again been recognized with a prestigious FIRST Robotics Chairman's Award.

The Algonquin Robotics Team "T-Hawks" has done it again!  

As they did in 2013, the T-Hawks have once again been recognized as a model for other teams with a prestigious "FIRST Robotics Chairman's Award."  They took home the award from the District Competition held at Rhode Island's Bryant University on March 21-22, 2014. 

FIRST Robotics was founded 25 years ago by internationally-renowned inventor and entrepreneur  Dean Kamen "to transform our culture by creating a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and technology leaders." FIRST makes this happen by engaging young people 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." 

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The Chairman’s Award is the most prestigious award given by FIRST.  It honors the team that "best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purposes and goals of FIRST."

Team 1100 earned the award in recognition of its year-round efforts to inspire younger students to become interested in science and technology through a variety of community based activities. The team's activities included: demonstrations in various locations, participating in Northborough’s Applefest and Southborough's Heritage Day, providing visitors with hands-on experiences driving robots, mentoring younger FIRST teams (the "FIRST® Lego League"), including hosting a FIRST Lego League competition, organizing Algonquin’s first “Science Day” to showcase Algonquin’s STEM-related clubs (Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics) and holding a Build Your Own Robot event for students in Grades 3 through 6. 

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To compete for the Chairman's Award, the team wrote a 10,000 character essay describing its activities and also created and produced a video showcasing the activities and philosophy of the team.  The Chairman's Award effort was capped off by a presentation to the judges at the District Competition.  The award automatically qualified the team to go on to the next higher round of competition, the District Championships, which was held at Boston University on April 10-12. 

Algonquin Robotics FIRST Team has been transforming the lives of students at Algonquin since 2002. The history of the team has been one of growth and accomplishment. None of it would be possible without the support of Algonquin and the team's faculty advisor, George Clarke, Lead Mentor Dan Strickland, and the dedicated cadre of mentors, many of whom have stayed on long after their own children graduated Algonquin. The team's activities would also not be possible without its corporate sponsors. Current principal sponsors are DOW Chemical Company and Boston Scientific Corporation.

To learn more about Algonquin Robotics FIRST Team 1100, check out the team's website team1100.org.

To become a sponsor, please contact first.team1100@gmail.com.

Submitted by Betsy Rosenbloom, publicity coordinator, Algonquin Regional High School FIRST Robotics Team 1100.


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