Hi , 

Here's some updates and news from FIRST^® Tech Challenge.

In this week's blast: 

🌊 INTO THE DEEP^SM presented by RTX Season Kickoff

🤖 Reminder! DonorsChoose- New Funding Campaign, Now Available

💼 FIRST^® Certified Professional Development

INTO THE DEEP^SM presented by RTX Season Kickoff 

The FIRST Tech Challenge 2024-2025 INTO THE DEEP presented by RTX season kickoff is Saturday, September 7 at 12:00 p.m. ET.

What does your team have planned for Kickoff? Find a local kickoff event near you for an in-person celebration or sign up for a tune-in reminder for the live stream. The kickoff celebration broadcast and game reveal of INTO THE DEEP will be streamed live on the FIRST Tech challenge YouTube channel with messages from FIRST favorites, the 2024 Dean’s List Award winners, and more!  

Visit the Game & Season page for more details.  

Reminder! DonorsChoose – New Funding Campaign, Now Available 

Through the generous support from 3M, FIRST-related DonorsChoose project funding is now available to any US-based full-time educators and school district employees who work directly with students at least 75% of the time from Public Schools, Public Charter Schools, Head Start Centers, and Bureau of Indian Education Schools.  

FIRST Educators will create a project on DonorsChoose and once the project is live, they must complete this form to be considered for this selective funding opportunity.  

Projects will be reviewed to ensure they meet donor intent and partial funding will be allocated accordingly. Equity Focus Projects will be prioritized as part of 3M’s commitment to reach 5 million underserved/underrepresented students by 2025.  

Visit this page to learn more about this opportunity!  

FIRST Certified Professional Development 

FIRST is hosting in-person regional and remote professional development sessions for FIRST Tech Challenge. Enhance your knowledge and skills by engaging in one of our upcoming sessions that involve hands-on experience with student components of the FIRST program! For more details visit our website or register via Eventbrite. If you have questions, contact us at FIRSTProfessionalServices@firstinspires.org. 

• September 19 – 20 | FIRST HQ | New Hampshire 
• September 21 – 28 | Saturday | Online 
• October 7 – 8 | Monday | Online And more coming soon!

September is the last scheduled in-person regional session until the spring.