MEDIA ADVISORY Local Teens Demonstrate Engineering Know-How – Rebound RumbleSM” at the FIRST® Robotics Competition Regional Event

Who: Teen teams from 42 local school districts and eight teams from the New York metropolitan area, Pennsylvania and Ohio will participate in School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc.’s (SBPLI) Long Island Regional FIRST® Robotics Competition for an opportunity to win regional recognition for design excellence, sportsmanship, teamwork, and more, and advance to the FIRST Championship competition. The public is encouraged to attend, catch the excitement of this intense competition, and cheer on their favorite teams. Admission is free. (Participating schools are listed below.)

The 2012 “Rebound Rumble” robotics game is played between two Alliances of three teams each. Each Alliance competes by trying to score as many of the basketballs in the hoops as possible during the two-minute and 15-second match. Balls scored in higher hoops score teams more points. Team Alliances are awarded bonus points if they are balanced on bridges at the end of the match.

What: The FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC®) is a program that challenges high school students — working with professional Mentors — to design and build a robot to contend in competitions that measure the effectiveness of each robot, the power of collaboration, and the determination of students. Teams in the Log Island Regional FIRST Robotics Competition will vie for regional awards and a spot at the FIRST Championship to be held April 25-28, at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, Mo. The competition is part of FIRST, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to inspire young people’s interest and participation in science and technology.

When: Thursday, March 29 8:30 a.m. — Teams Enter Arena

10:00 a.m. — Practice Rounds Begin



Friday, March 30 9:00 a.m.-9:30 a.m. — Opening Ceremony

9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. — Robotics Competition

4:30 p.m.-5:00 p.m. — Day One Awards Ceremony

5:30 p.m.-8:00 p.m. — VIP Reception



Saturday, March 31 9:00 a.m.-9:30 a.m. — Opening Ceremony

9:30 a.m.-11:45 a.m. — Robotics Competition

1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. — Playoff Matches and Awards

Where: David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex (Arena)

North Campus, Hofstra University
Hempstead, N.Y.

Directions: Exit M4 of the Meadowbrook Parkway, Route 24 West (Hempstead Turnpike). Stay on 24W for about one mile. Pass Nassau Coliseum. Make the first right after the first overhead walkway (this is the main entrance into the campus). Make a right at the stop sign onto a street named Northern Boulevard. The second building on the right is the Hofstra Arena. Follow signs to parking.

Photo Ops: Students testing, tuning up, and competing with their robots. Students use Microsoft Corporation’s award-winning Kinect for Xbox 360 to “drive” robots to shoot baskets. Watch student teams of Alliances score as many baskets as possible during fast-paced matches. Students that shoot higher baskets score more points. Additional points are awarded if they are able to balance bridges at the end of the match. Mentors, school groups, school mascots, family, and fans cheering on teams.

ABOUT FIRST®

Accomplished inventor Dean Kamen founded FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) in 1989 to inspire an appreciation of science and technology in young people. Based in Manchester, N.H., 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 three out of every five Fortune 500 companies and more $14 million in college scholarships, the not-for-profit organization hosts the FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC®) and FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC®) for high-school students, FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL®) for 9 to 14-year-olds, (9 to 16-year-olds outside the U.S., Canada, and Mexico) and Junior FIRST® LEGO® League (Jr.FLL®) for 6 to 9-year-olds. Gracious Professionalism™ is a way of doing things that encourages high-quality work, emphasizes the value of others, and respects individuals and the community. To learn more about FIRST, go to www.usfirst.org.

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LIST OF PARTICIPATING SCHOOLS



SUFFOLK COUNTY

Bay Shore

Brentwood

Central Islip

Comsewogue

Connetquot

Copiague

Deer Park

Half Hollow Hills

Hampton Bays

Hauppauge

Lindenhurst

Longwood

Miller Place

Patchogue-Medford

Pierson

Port Jefferson

Sachem

Sayville

Smithtown

Southold

Walt Whitman

West Babylon

West Islip

Westhampton Beach

NASSAU COUNTY

Baldwin

Carle Place

Cold Spring Harbor

Feeport

Great Neck South

Hicksville

Island Trees

Malverne

North Shore

Oceanside

Paul D. Schreiber

Plainedge

Plainview-Old Bethpage

Roosevelt

The Wheatley School

Uniondale

W.T. Clarke

Westbury

TEAMS FROM OTHER REGIONS

Aviation High School, Long Island City, NY

Champion High School, Warren, OH

Curtis High School, Staten Island, NY

Herbert H. Lehman High School, Bronx, NY

Mckee Vocational High School, Staten Island, NY

Pittsburgh Central Catholic High School, Pittsburgh, PA

Queens Vocational and Technical HS, Long Island City, NY

Riverside Engineering & Design High School, Yonkers, NY

School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI) was founded in 1984 by Fred Breithut with the goal of developing partnerships between local high schools and businesses that would provide students with practical experience and curriculum development, while helping the business community develop its future workforce. Over 100 partnerships have been formed. In 1999, SBPLI brought the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) robotics program to Long Island, where eight high school teams participated. Since then, the FIRST robotics program has grown to 50 teams, with over 2,300 students participating in FIRST Robotics and LEGO League programs on Long Island each year. The 2012 FIRST Robotics Competition will be held at Hofstra University on March 29-31, 2012.

Hank Russell, Public Relations Director
The Public Relations and Marketing Group
156 North Ocean Avenue
Patchogue, NY 11772
(631) 207-1057
hrussell@theprmg.com

This release was published on openPR.