Mentor Breakfast at San Diego Regional

Mentor Breakfast at San Diego Regional

Mentor Breakfast

FIRST could not exist without our mentors, and we value all the ways you show up and support our teams throughout the year.

As a token of our appreciation, we invite you to start practice day off on a good foot with some fresh donuts and coffee! Stop by our table outside the volunteer lounge on Friday morning.

DATE: Friday, March 22nd
TIME: 8:30am – 9:30am
LOCATION: Outside the Volunteer Lounge at UCSD Liontree Arena

 

Join the San Diego FIRST Mentor Network 

Last fall, we launched the San Diego FIRST Mentor Network on Slack, as a digital community to help foster connection and increase collaboration. This build season, our local mentors found it exceptionally useful to quickly find parts needed from other teams, or to share tools.

To request an invitation to the San Diego FIRST Mentor Network, please fill out the form here.

 

Thank you for all you do!

Women in STEM at San Diego Regional

Women in STEM at San Diego Regional

Are you curious about what a career in STEM fields can look like for you? Do you want to connect with successful women in your field and learn about their experiences and paths to success? Then you won’t want to miss our “Women in STEM” event, exclusively for team members and mentors at the San Diego Regional. 

At this event, you will have the opportunity to:

  • Chat with female STEM professionals about their career paths and experiences.
  • Get inspired by successful women in STEM fields who have overcome challenges and achieved great things.
  • Learn about the different career options available to you in STEM fields, and get advice on how to pursue your dreams.
  • Network with other female students and STEM professionals, making valuable connections that could lead to future opportunities.

And that’s not all! To make this event even more special, we’ll be treating all attendees to dessert. You’ll be able to indulge in sweet treats and get the information and inspiration you need to take your future to the next level.

Though the event is focused around female experiences in STEM, everyone is welcome to attend. We can’t wait to see you there and help you on your journey to success!

DATE: Saturday, March 23rd
TIME: 1:15pm – 2:30pm
LOCATION: UCSD – LionTree Arena, in the Volunteer Lounge

MEET THE STEM PROFESSIONALS

Saritha Goli

Saritha Goli

Senior Director, Engineering - Qualcomm

Gabriella Loaiza

Gabriella Loaiza

Mechanical Engineer in Unmanned Marine Vehicle Lab - NIWC Pacific

Kathreen Thome, PhD

Kathreen Thome, PhD

Fusion Scientist - General Atomics

Mirella Cruz

Mirella Cruz

Engineer 1 - RDQ, Inc.

Kelly Kloster Hon

Kelly Kloster Hon

Sr. Manager, Product Development Engineering - Becton Dickinson

Olivia Li

Olivia Li

Senior Software Engineer - Qualcomm Wireless Research Department

Vanessa Eslava

Vanessa Eslava

Transportation Engineer - TYLin

Natalie LaRowe

Natalie LaRowe

Mechanical Engineering Business Systems Analyst - General Atomics

Sarah Rodriguez

Sarah Rodriguez

Application Developer Master - TechFlow, Inc.

Snighda Chalasani

Snighda Chalasani

Embedded Engineer - Qualcomm

Sahana Kumar

Sahana Kumar

Medical Student at UCSD School of Medicine - Biomedical Engineering Degree from John Hopkins

Alumni Mixer at San Diego Regional

Alumni Mixer at San Diego Regional

FIRST Alumni and FIRST Seniors

Come on down for sweet treats, a FIRST California alumni sticker and a chance to hang out with fellow FIRST alumni and soon-to-be alumni!

A Talent Aquisition rep from Qualcomm with be there along with a couple other special guests.

DATE: Saturday, March 23rd
TIME: 12:15pm – 1:00pm
LOCATION: Next to the field

* Please do not use your school email address

Sign Up for your FREE Pass to the Alumni Mixer

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By joining the San Diego Regional Alumni Mixer, you will also be signed up for the FIRST California Alumni network and will occasionally receive info about events and opportunities.

2023/2024 FLL Championship & Explore Festival – California Southern

2023/2024 FLL Championship & Explore Festival – California Southern

California Southern FIRST LEGO League held their Championship event at Capistrano Valley High School in Mission Viejo, CA on Sunday, January 14, 2024. 50 FIRST LEGO League Challenge and 40 FIRST LEGO League Explore teams participated in hopes of receiving a bid to move on to Worlds or one of the 3 Opens we have bids for.

    Thank you to John Tsai from @teambreadpandas for capture these great moments!

    FIRST LEGO League Challenge Championship 

    Capistrano Valley High School

    Congratulations to Team 44761 LeXT–Eat Yo Vegetables Express and Team 55769 Code Breakers for becoming the 2023/2024 MASTERPICE CA Southern Co-Champions.

    Co-Champion

    44761 – LeXT–Eat Yo Vegetables Express

     

    Advancing to World Festival in Houston in April 2024

    Co-Champion

    55769 – Code Breakers

    Advancing to Asia Pacific Open in Australia.

    Runner Up

    56458 – Best Bot Builders


    Advancing to Western Edge Invitational in Long Beach in May 2024

    1st Place Core Values

    Bot Cats

    Finalist 1 Core Values

    50899 – Mechanical Meatloaf (w/a side of pickles)

    Advancing to Western Edge Invitational in Long Beach in May 2024

    Finalist 2 Core Values

    Vincent Van Gogh Bots

    1st Place Innovation Project

    16023 – Dumpster Diving Candy Eaters

    Advancing to Western Edge Invitational in Long Beach in May 2024

    Finalist 1 Innovation Project

    Spartan Sparks

    Finalist 2 Innovation Project

    The Artitect

    Motivate Award

    24802 Super Smash Bro-Bots

    Advancing to Western Edge Invitational in Long Beach in May 2024

    Motivate Award

    26887 – SoCal Grizzlies

    Advancing to Open European Championship in Norway.

    Excellence in Engineering

    51432 – Green Dragon Bots

    Advancing to Western Edge Invitational in Long Beach in May 2024

    Excellence in Engineering

    BrainWaves

     

    1st Place Robot Design

    Ovms falcons 2

    Finalist 1 Robot Design

    Triton Tribe

    Finalist 2 Robot Design

    LeXT–Lets Eat Extra Tacos

    1st Place Robot Performance

    Creative Crafters

    2nd Place Robot Performance

    Code Breakers

    3rd Place Robot Performance

    Ovms falcons 2

    Breakthrough

    JB Robotics

    Breakthrough

    Awesome Adventurers

    Rising Star

    STEM Androids

    Breakthrough

    Awesome Adventurers

    FIRST LEGO League Explore Festival

    Capistrano Valley High School

    California Southern FIRST LEGO League  had the opportunity to pilot an Explore game this season. Teams used their robot to complete 6 different missions in their 2.5 autonomous time. It was next with great success and teams are hoping they get to play again next season.

    24123 – Starburst Engineers

     

    Advancing to World Festival in Houston in April 2024

    28808 – Brick Besties


    Advancing to Western Edge Invitational in Long Beach in May 2024

    24367 – LEGO Gears


    Advancing to Western Edge Invitational in Long Beach in May 2024

    30211 – Minifigs

    Advancing to Western Edge Invitational in Long Beach in May 2024

    26657 – Sci-5

    Advancing to Western Edge Invitational in Long Beach in May 2024

    THANK YOU MENTORS AND VOLUNTEERS!

    None of the teams’ successes would have been possible this season without those special mentors who have spent hours each week with your team. And this event would not be possible without the support of our volunteers.

    Coach Manny from Super Smash Bro-Bots was the winner of the Coach/Mentor Award! We had the fortune to interview him during the Championship and little did we know at the time, he was about to snag the well-deserved Coach/Mentor’s Award!

    A big thank you and congratulations goes out to Jared Hasen-Klein for earning the Volunteer of the Year Award!

    Coach/Mentor Award WINNER

    Coach Manny from Super Smash Bro-Bots

    Coach/Mentor Finalist 1

    Coach Miguel from Lakeside MS – Mustang Masterpiece

    Coach/Mentor Finalist 2

    Coach Cynthia – Techno Tigers

    Volunteer of the Year Award

    Jared H

    FLL Western Edge Open

    FLL Western Edge Open

    On the weekend of May 12-14, 2023, 76 FIRST LEGO League teams from 22 counties and across the US met at the Long Beach Convention Center for the Western Edge Open.

    The Western Edge Open was a three day event giving teams an opportunity to participate in a high level competition. Team also participated in On-the-Spot, a California Southern FIRST LEGO League challenge, where teams were paired up with 2 additional alliance partners and had to reprogram their robots to compete in a new challenge.

    Teams also were judged on their pit decorations and by their peers for their Gracious Professionalism. Teams were able to celebrate and socialize at the team social where they did a team scavenger hunt to meet the other teams.

    You can find a full list of results here:

    Western Edge Open

    Champions Award

    Robotics School
    from Brazil

    1st Place Robot Design

    2Xstream Robotics
    from Illinois

    1st Place Core Values

    JARVIS INDIRASE
    from Mexico

    1st Place Innovation Project

    A’rturli
    from Kazakhstan

    1st Place Robot Performance

    Smilebots
    from Switzerland

    Breakthrough Award

    Microbots
    from Colorado

    Motivate Award

    The Awesome TechKnowLogics
    from Ohio

    Engineering Excellence

    The Power Rangers
    from Washington

    Rising All-Star

    Barnstormers
    from Arkansas

    On The Spot - 1st Place

    Legoborci z Oravy
    from Slovakia

    Breakthrough Award

    Yukon All-Sparks
    from British Columbia

    Motivate Award

     Ctrl-Z Bayview Glen
    from Ontario

    Engineering Excellence

    Astro-Techs
    from California

    Rising All-Star

    Bovina Brainiacs
    from Mississippi

    On The Spot - 1st Place

    Super Smash BroBots
    from California

    Breakthrough Award

    6.0 GPA
    from California

    Motivate Award

    Artemis
    from Maryland

    Engineering Excellence

    LINCEBOTS JGM
    from Mexico

    Rising All-Star

    Awesome Blossoms
    from Washington

    On The Spot - 1st Place

    2Xstream Robotics
    from Illinois

    Pit Award

    Trinity Christian Those Guys
    from Kentucky

    Peer Award

    Grace Generators
    from Australia

    Pit Award

    Fast Fooders
    from Hawaii

    Peer Award

    LINCEBOTS JGM
    from Mexico

    THANK YOU MENTORS & VOLUNTEERS!

    This event would not have been possible without our mentors and volunteers. Congratulations to these special awards winners – and thank you!

    Coach/Mentor Award

    Tracy Martz
    from Awesome Techknowlogics

    Coach/Mentor Award

    Coach Manny
    from JARVIS INDIRASE

    Coach/Mentor Award

    Tae Tyu
    from Garage Engineers

    Coach/Mentor Award

     Steve Lidy
    from Holy LEGO Batman

    Coach/Mentor Award

    Ginny Dickerson
    from Bovina Brainiacs

    Volunteer Award

    Grant Bochantin

    THANK YOU TO OUR SUPPORTING FIRST TEAMS!

    A special thank you to the following FIRST Califorina teams for helping making this event awesome.

    FRC The Holy Cows, FRC Hammer Heads, FRC The MilkenKnights, FRC WAR Lords, FRC Project 691FTC Dapper Robonoodles, FLL Mechanical Meatloaf with a Side of Pickles.

    RE-LIVE THE ACTION!

    Explore our Instagram Highlights tab to re-live the action from the weekend!

    California Teams at FIRST Championship in Houston – 2023

    California Teams at FIRST Championship in Houston – 2023

    We are so proud of all 81 FIRST teams from California who brought their “A” game to compete, collaborate, have fun and make memories along with hundreds of other student robotics teams from 59 countries around the globe!  

    The 2023 FIRST Championship presented by BAE Systems, the world’s largest celebration of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) for students, celebrated the conclusion of the 2022-2023 robotics season, FIRST ENERGIZE presented by Qualcomm, with 50,000+ students, mentors/coaches, volunteers, sponsors, media, and supporters.

    Congratulations to the following California teams, students and volunteers who are bringing home a huge amount of impressive awards.

    CALIFORNIA AWARDS AT CHAMPIONSHIP

    On Winning Alliance

    Team 1323
    Madera

    Team 4414
    Ventura

    Dean's List Winner

    Brianna Adewinmbi
    Team 687
    Carson

    DIVISIONS:

    • On the Winning Alliances: 
      • Archimedes – Team 972 from Los Gatos and Team 687 from Carson
      • Galileo – Team 1678 from Davis and Team 3476 from Irvine
      • Hopper – Team 1323 from Madera and Team 4414 from Ventura
      • Johnson – Team 973 from Atascadero
      • Milstein – Team 5419 from Berkeley
    • On the Finalists Alliances:
      • Curie – Team 5940 from Redwood City and Team 649 from Saratoga
      • Newton – Team 1538 form San Diego and Team 4419 from San Marcos
    • Engineering Inspiration:
      • Archimedes – Team 4 from Van Nuys
    • Creativity Award: 
      • Curie – Team 5940 from Redwood City
      • Milstein – Team 604 from San Jose
    • Excellence in Engineering
      • Archimedes – Team 254 from San Jose
    • Rookie Inspiration:
      • Archimedes – Team 9038 from San Francisco
    • Imagery Award: 
      • Curie – Team 4738 from San Diego
    • Autonomous Award: 
      • Johnson – Team 971 from Mountain View
    • Highest Rookie Seed: 
      • Milstein – Team 9125 from Newark
      • Newton – Team 9084 from Goleta
    • Judges Award: 
      • Archimedes – Team 1700 from Palo Alto
    • Industrial Design Award: 
      • Hopper – Team 1323 from Madera
    • Quality Award: 
      • Newton – Team 1538 from San Diego
      • Hopper – Team 4414 from Ventura

    On Winning Alliance

    Team 18457
    Newbury Park

    Dean's List Winners

    Priyanka Karunakaran
    Team 18715
    San Jose

    Perry Han
    Team 542
    Cerritos

    3rd Place Compass Award

    Noah Devico
    Team 18457
    Newbury Park

    DIVISIONS:

    • On the Winning Alliances: 
      • Edison Division – Team 18457 from Newbury Park

      • Ochoa Division: Team 14496 from Escondido

    • Inspire Award:
      • Jemison – Team 14140 from La Jolla
    • Control Award:
      • Ochoa – Team 14496 from Escondido
    • Judges Award:
      • Franklin: “I Am Phoenix” Award: Team 20500 from Sun Valley

    Challenge Solution Award

    Rockin Robos
    Rocklin

    Core Values Award

    Chicken Hunters
    Encinitas

    Coding Award

    Trouble Makers
    Fremont

    ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

    Many many thanks to all the mentors, volunteers, sponsors and parents who helped make this all possible! With extra special thanks to the 2023 FIRST Championship Presenting Sponsor Qualcomm who continues to fully embrace the FIRST community with open arms and great generosity.

    San Diego Regional – 2023

    San Diego Regional – 2023

    The 17th Annual San Diego FIRST Robotics Competition presented by Qualcomm, held March 23-26, 2023, was another great success!  The event featured 50 teams and 1,500+ students from local San Diego high schools plus through other California cities, Switzerland, Turkey and Chinese Taipei. Participants and spectators loved our new venue, the UCSD LionTree Arena!

    We began practice day with a Mentor Breakfast to fuel our wonderful mentors with coffee and donuts, introduce them to our local San Diego Mentor Network on Slack and to give them a chance to connect with each other in person.

    During opening ceremonies Qualcomm’s SVP & CIO, Cisco Sanchez, announced the $10,000 Qualcomm Innovation Grant which was later to be won by Team 4738, Patriobots, from Patrick Henry High. Lieutenant Colonel Adrian A. Zinnerman, from the Air Force, also shared passionate words about his experience and encouraged the participants to continue to pursue their passion for STEM. 

    At the competition, three STEM proclamations were presented from the County of San Diego and the State of California –  STEAM California Statewide Observance Day, Commending STEAM Robotics Observance and Honoring Women in STEAM in San Diego County. A big thank you to California Assemblymember Brian Maienschein, San Diego County Supervisor Joel Anderson and Team Spyder for these important recognitions.

    It was a full house at the Women in STEM event, with great connections made with STEM professionals from Viasat, Qualcomm, UCSD, The Air Force, General Atomics, Sinopia Bio, Becton Dickinson and Society of Women Engineers. This was an amazing opportunity for women in the field to come together and network with each other. LinkedIn profiles for the STEM professionals can be found here.

    The Alumni Event also had a great turnout with alumni and soon-to-be alumni mixing and mingling then gathering for a fun group photo.

    New this year, FIRST California Gracious Professional pins were awarded to participants, volunteers and mentors who were “caught in the act” of being a gracious professional. And speaking of gracious professionals, we were also honored to have a visit from UCSD Chancellor Khosla and Dr. Paul E. Jacobs (FIRST Board of Directors)!

    Finally, a huge congratulations to all the teams who worked tirelessly throughout the competition. Your hard work and dedication paid off, and we are proud of your achievements.

    We would like to thank the volunteers, mentors, and sponsors who made the event possible. Your support and dedication are truly appreciated and invaluable to the success of the competition. We look forward to another successful event next year.

    Big thanks to Tom LaFleur for capturing these amazing San Diego Regional memories!

    Feel free to download and share any of these photos.  You can tag FIRST San Diego at @sdfirstrobotics and FIRST California at @firstroboticscalifornia on Instagram  and use hashtags #FIRSTinCA, #FIRSTSD #firstininspires, #CHARGEDUP and #omgrobots.

    LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!

    The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the San Diego Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023

    FIRST Impact Award

    The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.   

    The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture.  The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.

    From little ones to seniors, this team embodies all of FIRST’s goals and objectives under their expansive wingspan. Giving their blood, sweat and tears for their country, while innovating to save the environment worldwide. This team rises from the ashes once again to display its aura.

    • Team 5993, Istech Robotics Society, from Istanbul, Turkey

      Engineering Inspiration

      The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community.  This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.

      From the moment you meet any of this team’s members you get inspired by their FRC program depth. Spending nearly 4000 hours volunteering this year, all of their team members have mentored inside and outside their community and fueling 7 FLL teams into existence. Whether you look east or have a WESTVIEW you will find more than a dozen options on how this team has been inspiring others.

      Regional Winners

      • Team 973, Greybots, from Atascadero, CA
      • Team 1538, The Holy Cows, from San Diego, CA
      • Team 4419, Team Rewind, from San Marcos, CA

      Finalists (wildcards)

      • Team 599, The Robodox, from Granada Hills, CA
      • Team 4738, Patribots, from San Diego, CA

      Dean’s List Finalist

      In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.

      • Kavish Kondap, from Team 2485, W.A.R Lords
      • Xochitl Martinez, from Team 3342, Option 16

      Woodie Flowers Finalist Award

      FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

      In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.

      Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.

      • Barış Çetin, from Team 5993, Istech Robotics Society

      Additional Awards

      Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the San Diego Regional! See the list here.

      Instagram Highlights

      Don’t Miss Out on the Best Moments of San Diego. Watch @sdfirstrobotics Instagram Highlight Tab!

      Silicon Valley Regional – 2023

      Silicon Valley Regional – 2023

      From April 5-8, 2023, this year’s Silicon Valley Regional welcomed 59 teams from 5 countries to compete in a fantastic Sport for the Mind event.  There were 56 veterans and 3 rookie teams in attendance. It was great to have speakers from PG&E and the KLA Foundation.  

      Highlights from the event included trivia, Gracious Professionalism pins as well as world class robots playing the Charged Up sponsored by Haas robot game.

      The Volunteer of the Year was Cameron Tacklind, and the Woodie Flowers Finalist Awardee was Marta Carrillo from Team 1967 in San Jose CA.

      Event winners were Team 254 from San Jose CA, Team 1678 from Davis CA, Team 100 from Woodside CA, and Team 2489 from San Jose CA.  The FIRST Impact Award was given to Team 5985 from Wollongong Australia. 

      We’d like to extend an immense THANK YOU to all the sponsors, mentors and volunteers who contributed to this very successful Regional. 

      LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!

      The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Silicon Valley Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023

      FIRST Impact Award

      The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.   

      The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture.  The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.

      This team’s impact will leave you in TEARS,
      With all those they have helped across the YEARS.
      Their documentation was quite extensive and showed the breadth of their REACH,
      In three years, twenty-three hundred students they did TEACH.
      Taking Lego robotics to a new HEIGHT,
      They turned it into therapy, vocational training, and a shining LIGHT.
      Saving a FRC regional with funding and SPACE,
      This team is many-a-student’s home and safe PLACE.
      To create opportunities and transform communities, this team does STRIVE,
      Please join us and congratulate team five-nine-eight-FIVE!

      •  Team 5985 – Project Bucephalus from Wollongong, Australia

      Engineering Inspiration

      The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community.  This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.

      This team boasts a robust internal training and mentorship program, ensuring that new members quickly find their “sea legs”.
      They advocate for STEM education in their local community, securing national funding, and empowering other teams to join them.
      Their “fluid” approach to Outreach “washes” over language barriers by teaching conversation skills. And by joining forces with international teams, they reach well beyond their shores.
      Their commitment continues to make “waves” with medical partnerships.
      “Go baby go”!

      • Team 649 – MSET Fish from Saratoga, CA

      Regional Winners

      • Team 254 – The Cheesy Poofs from San Jose, CA
      • Team 1678 – Citrus Circuits from Davis, CA
      • Team 100 – Wildhats from Woodside, CA

      Regional Finalist (wildcard)

      • Team 9126 – Silver Hawks from Kaohsiung City, Chinese Taipei
      • Team 2489 – The Insomniacs from San Jose, CA
      • Team 604 – Quixilver from San Jose, CA

      Dean’s List Finalist

      In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.

      • Alison Lin from Team 1678, Citrus Circuits
      • Ian Parker from Team 581, Blazing Bulldogs

      Woodie Flowers Finalist Award

      FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

      In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.

      Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.

       This mentor challenges students to plan for the future through leadership development weekends, where students are at the forefront of envisioning technical goals. This mentor teaches young women to advocate for their ideas, from early whiteboard brainstorming sessions all the way to competition strategy. Working to inspire the broader FIRST community, this mentor hosts summer bootcamps to introduce others to robotics. Operating with an “above and beyond attitude” she has inspired generations!

      Please join us in congratulating the 2023 Silicon Valley Regional Woodie Flowers FINALIST Award winner, Marta Carrillo, from Team 1967!

      • Marta Carrillo from Team 1967, The Janksters

      Additional Awards

      Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Silion Valley Regional! See the list here.

      Instagram Highlights

      Don’t Miss Out on the Best Moments of Silcion Valley Regional. Watch Instagram Highlight Tab!

      Aerospace Valley Regional – 2023

      Aerospace Valley Regional – 2023

      Aerospace Valley Regional celebrated its 6th year of FRC competition at Eastside High School from March 29 – April 1, 2023.  The event was without rain or storm or unforeseen incident.  We hosted 36 teams with one international team from Switzerland.  

      All in all it was a great event. We’d like to extend an immense THANK YOU to all the sponsors, mentors and volunteers who contributed to this very successful Regional. 

      Feel free to download and share any of these photos.  You can tag FIRST California at @firstroboticscalifornia on Instagram  and use hashtags #FIRSTinCA, #firstininspires, #CHARGEDUP and #omgrobots.

      LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!

      The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Aerospace Valley Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023

      FIRST Impact Award

      The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.   

      The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture.  The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.

       

      Engineering Inspiration

      The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community.  This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.

      • Team 399 – Eagle Robotics from Lancaster, CA

      Regional Winners

      Finalist (wildcard)

      • Team 2073 – EagleForce from Elk Grove, CA

      Dean’s List Finalist

      In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.

      • Jessica Li from Team 4079, Quantum Leap
      • Katie Davies from Team 4698, Raider Robotics

       

      Woodie Flowers Finalist Award

      FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

      In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.

      Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.

      • Aaron Dolgin from Team 691, Project 691 Robotics

      Additional Awards

      Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Aerospace Valley Regional! See the list here.

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      Monterey Bay Regional – 2023

      Monterey Bay Regional – 2023

      The Monterey Bay Regional welcomed 36 teams this year from California, Arizona and Chinese Taipei at Seaside High School from March 29 – April 1, 2023.  The weather on setup day was a bit challenging, and we were thrilled that Mother Nature cooperated for the rest of the event.  Many teams enjoyed the location and took some time to enjoy the nearby Monterey beach.

      Congressman Jimmy Panetta (CA-19) joined us during the qualification matches and delivered a great talk to the students about the importance of STEM.  He was then shown around the event and spent time speaking with many students and teams.

      Other highlights of the event were the Mentor Networking event which was hosted by Team 971 from Mountain View CA, and the FIRST Impact Award Exchange which was hosted by Team 1671 from Clovis CA.

      The Volunteer of the Year was awarded to Roby Hyde from Team 5104 in Pacific Grove CA, and the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award was given to Matt Lussier from Team 7413 in Pacific Grove CA.

      The winning alliance was Team 1323 from Madera CA, Team 5940 from Redwood City CA, and Team 6998 from Chinese Taipei.  It was great to see an international alliance take home the honors!

      The FIRST Impact Award winner was Team 2486 from Flagstaff AZ. Congratulations to all teams for a great event!

       

      LIST OF TEAMS ADVANCING TO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN HOUSTON!!!

      The following teams and individuals earned top honors at the Monterey Bay Regional and earned their way to compete at the FIRST Championships in Houston, April 19-22, 2023

      FIRST Impact Award

      The FIRST Impact Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the purpose and goals of FIRST.   

      The FIRST Impact Award is presented to the team judged to have the most significant measurable impact of its partnerships among its participants and community over a sustained period, not just a single build season. The winner is able to demonstrate progress towards FIRST’s mission of transforming our culture.  The recipient team will be invited to a FIRST Championship where it will compete for the FIRST Impact Award against winners from other qualifying events.

      This team has organized outreach events, led workshops, hosted competitions, and sponsored teams – building strong FIRST LINKAGES everywhere they go. Their strong advocacy for STEM with their local government has impacted countless people and driven real change. Their focus on mentorship and accessibility reaches many in their surrounding isolated communities.

      They are truly NUTS about the FIRST mission and THEY are the change we love to see! Way to go Team 2486!

       

      Engineering Inspiration

      The Engineering Inspiration Award celebrates outstanding success in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering within a team’s school and community.  This team will advance to the Championships and receive a $5000 NASA grant toward registration.

      Not only are they building innovative robots, but they are working to transform a culture. They understand that not all learning can be done through books which is why these COOL CATS are working through all levels of their government to promote STEM and FIRST.

      • Team 6998 – Unipards from Tainin, Chinese Taipei

      Regional Winners

      • Team 1323 – MadTown Robotics from Madera, CA
      • Team 5940 – BREAD from Redwood City, CA
      • Team 6998 – Unipards from Tainin, Chinese Taipei

      Regional Finalist (wildcard)

      • Team 9125 – Mechanical Magicians from Newark, CA
      • Team 8033 – Highlander Robotics from Piedmont, CA

      Dean’s List Finalist

      In an effort to recognize the leadership and dedication of FIRST’s most outstanding FRC students, the Kamen family sponsors an award for selected top students known as the FIRST Dean’s List. This award celebrates a student’s outstanding leadership and effectiveness in advancing respect and appreciation for engineering and engineers, both within their school, as well as their community. FIRST Dean’s List Finalists will compete at the championship for the FIRST Dean’s List.

      • Eleanor Lyons from Team 7413, Plus Ultra
      • Sindhu Gokaraju Team 4255, Robodores 

      Woodie Flowers Finalist Award

      FIRST stands apart from other competitions in STEM and sports due to the FIRST Ethos of Gracious Professionalism, the concept of Coopertition, and the commitment to the FIRST Core Values. The guiding force behind these principles was Dr. Woodie Flowers. Dr. William Murphy, Jr., who was instrumental in creating the concept of FIRST with Dean Kamen, recognized the unique perspective, wisdom, and communication style that Woodie brought to the FIRST Robotics Competition.

      In honor of Woodie, Dr. Murphy founded the Woodie Flowers Award in 1996. He recognized that the FIRST ethos would be carried forward by our FIRST mentors and sought to celebrate those mentors who demonstrate the leadership, ethical behavior, and communication skills exemplified by Woodie. Woodie believed “societies get the best of what they celebrate”.

      Being recognized by students, through nomination essays, makes this honor very meaningful to mentors. It is truly an honor for a mentor to be nominated for this award.

      ​​This mentor is a volunteer, mentor, advocate, and inspiration and has helped multiple teams. Students share how this mentor “promotes a wonderful work ethic, makes us laugh during stressful times, opens doors for us, and believes in us.”  He provides insight in technical, logistical, and business skills to his students. “Every day we interact with him, he inspires us to be better people.”

      • Matthew Lussier from Team 7413, Plus Ultra

      Additional Awards

      Congratulations to the Teams and individuals that earned the remaining awards at the Monterey Bay Regional! See the list here.

      Instagram Highlights

      Don’t Miss Out on the Best Moments of Monterey Bay Regional. Watch Instagram Highlight Tab!

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