Peoria, Illinois (January 4, 2013) More than 300 high school students from throughout central Illinois will participate in the FIRST Robotics Competition kick-off event at Bradley University on Saturday morning.

Thirteen teams of students will meet at the Renaissance Coliseum on the Bradley Coliseum for the program that begins at 9:00 a.m. The kick-off includes televised remarks via NASA TV followed by the unveiling of a sample competition practice field. The kick-off event is sponsored by Caterpillar Inc. and hosted by Bradley University’s Caterpillar College of Engineering and Technology.

FIRST, For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology, is an organization dedicated to motivating the next generation to understand, use, and enjoy science and technology. Dean Kamen, president of DEKA Research & Development Corporation, as well as an inventor, entrepreneur, and advocate for science and technology, founded the organization in 1989 to inspire an appreciation of science and technology in young people.

Following the unveiling of the sample practice field, teams will receive a kit of parts. Teams will have six weeks to design, build, program, and test robots to meet the 2013 engineering challenge. The teams then will compete in one of more than 50 regional events. Regional winners will move on to the championship that will be held April 24-27 in St. Louis, Missouri.

Teams participating in the kick-off event at Bradley are:
Bloomington-Normal – MetalCow Robotics
Champaign – Ctrl-Z
Decatur – HTA
Dunlap – D.E.R.T.
Knox County – Techno Ferrets
Metamora – MARS/WARS
Peoria – Richwoods High School – Robot Casserole
– Limestone High School – Argos
– Notre Dame High School – Icarus
Quad Cities – QC Elite
Springfield – Springfield 4-H/UIS
Springfield – SUL
Tremont – Roboteers

Based in Manchester, New Hampshire, 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 many Fortune 500 companies and more than $14 million in college scholarships, the not-for-profit organization hosts competitions for both grade and high school students.