SBPLI Announces Award Winners of FIRST® Tech Challenge Qualifying Tournament in Center Moriches

Eight Teams Advance to Long Island Championships Scheduled for February 11
 
CAPTION: Members of FIRST^® Tech Challenge Team #11401 (GPR – Girl Powered Robotics) from Bay Shore play defense during one of the matches at the Qualifying Tournament that was presented by School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI) at Center Moriches High School on Sunday, January 15. 
 
Center Moriches High School was home to the second of three FIRST^® (For Inspiration and Recognition in Science and Technology) Tech Challenge Qualifying Tournaments, which was presented by School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI) on Sunday, January 15. During this qualifying event, 26 Long Island teams, comprised of students age 12 to 18, used their problem-solving skills, creative thinking and sportsmanship to compete for a chance to compete at the Long Island Championship at Smithtown High School on February 11.
 
Working along with their mentors, these students built and programmed robots for VELOCITY VORTEX^SM, during which two alliances of three teams attempt to score as many points as possible by moving particles into their own center vortex or corner vortex and claiming beacons for their alliance by triggering them to illuminate their alliance color. At the end of the game, the color of the beacon determines the alliance credited for the successful claiming of the beacon.
 
After the conclusion of the event, teams were presented with a variety of awards, as follows:
 

 
 
The following teams have advanced to the Long Island FIRST Tech Challenge Championships, which will take place on February 11 at Smithtown West High School:
 

 
 
Local sponsors included School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. and Center Moriches Public Schools; national sponsors included Qualcomm, Rockwell Collins and PTC.
 
For more information on SBPLI or the FTC Qualifying Tournament, please visit www.firstlongisland.org.
 
*** Pictures of winning teams and award winners are available via e-mail and upon request.
**** Descriptions of the awards and their criteria are available upon request.
 
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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 over 200 of the Fortune 500 companies and more than $30 million in college scholarships, the not-for-profit organization hosts the FIRST^® Robotics Competition for students in Grades 9-12; FIRST^® Tech Challenge for Grades 7-12; FIRST^® LEGO^® League for Grades 4-8; and FIRST^® LEGO^® League Jr. for Grades K-4. 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.firstinspires.org.
 
About School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc.
School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI) is a fully volunteer-run 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 1984 by Fred Breithut with the goal of developing partnerships between local high schools and businesses. His goal was to provide students with practical experience and curriculum development, while helping the business community develop its future workforce, which resulted in the formation of over 100 partnerships. In 1999, SBPLI brought the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) to Long Island, which featured just eight FIRST Robotics Competition high school teams. Since then, the Long Island Regional FIRST Robotics Competition has grown to over 50 teams competing each year. SBPLI also hosts Long Island’s annual FIRST LEGO League Qualifying and Championship Tournaments and the FIRST LEGO League Jr. Expos, in which over 2,000 elementary and middle school students from Nassau and Suffolk Counties take part each year. In 2016, SBPLI added the FIRST Tech Challenge to its roster of programs. For more information about the programs, or to learn how to become a sponsor, visit www.sbpli-lifirst.org.