NEW: FIRST IN MICHIGAN YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL We are excited to announce the formation of FIRST in Michigan’s Youth Advisory Council. FIRST in Michigan is looking for 20 FRC students to represent the voices of our students. These students are expected to attend monthly online meetings to plan, promote, and participate in a variety of initiatives and events. Representatives may be expected to serve as representatives of FIM, be points of contact to other teams, and even attend FIRST/STEM based outreach events. Please pass this along to your students, and have any interested student read through the attached bylaws and fill out this application toRead More →

The Ford FRC grant for 2024 is now open. I was asked to quickly pass the details along to you: Hello FiM FRC Teams! Ford Motor Company is reaching out to all FiM FRC FIRST teams this year to invite you to apply for the 2023-2024 Ford FIRST Team Sponsorship!  To qualify, you must have an active Ford employee or retiree as a mentor and complete the following application by Saturday, September 30th at 11:59pm.  Please note – applications cannot be submitted by current Ford or agency employees.   Direct Link to Application   The Ford FIRST Board will inform teams if they have been awarded Ford Sponsorship byRead More →

Before I get to the MDE Grant Adjustment, I am in need of an FRC classroom curriculum right away. Please fill out this quick form if your team does FRC in the classroom: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScV5UOPO8gyrbp0ABcduEabpQstx60dvaPoYhmOecruf5CgPA/viewform MDE Grant Increase   The MDE found itself with extra funds on hand after pulling back the grant money from public school teams that didn’t ultimately meet the grant requirements. It took this money and redistributed it among all public school teams. The amounts are small but still helpful.   The increase is only for public school teams. There was not enough pulled back from non-public school teams to warrant a redistribution. Public school teams should contact your districtRead More →

With a heavy heart, I pass along the sad news that Francois Castaing, who brought FIRST to Michigan, passed away on July 27 at the age of 78. Francois loved FIRST. When Dean Kamen introduced Francois to FIRST in the early 1990s, he gathered the automotive industry together and urged them to support it. They all did. And thanks to Francois, they still do. Francois loved to innovate: cars, companies, anything he could make better through his hard work, strategic clarity, ingenuity and determination. FIRST was no exception. In 2008, he helped us champion a new competition model for the high school FIRST Robotics Competition. We formedRead More →

Teachers have until close of business on Thursday, June 1 to fill out a log of their hours and earn Continuing Education Credits for FIRST (SCECHS). All the info you need can be found using this link, including the log form and where to submit it: https://www.techplan.org/professional-development/99h-robotics-competition-scech/ If you have any issues submitting, please be sure to contact arrasa@michigan.gov before 5:00 pm on June 1. Please copy me and attach your log. FREE KITS FOR OUR YOUNGER PROGRAMS We have free kits and registration fees for all newly forming FTC (middle school program) and FLL-Challenge teams (late elementary program). If you used to have an FTC orRead More →

For those of you who didn’t make the Zoom call, or those that want to revisit the topic, here is the Link and PassCode to the Recording: Watch the Recording Passcode: gVWy4&s3 We plan to have a brainstorming session soon. If you would like to be included, please let me know by hitting reply to this email. Also if your school is already doing this, please let me know. Best Regards, Gail Alpert President, FIRST in Michigan 248-425-4148 gail@firstinmichigan.orgRead More →

This is a reminder to join our Zoom meeting TODAY at 4:30pm to learn how your students can earn high school credit for what they’ve learned through FIRST!!  Please pass this invite along to your parents and students, as well as your administration! The two experts on the topic will be our special speakers: Megan Schrauben Executive Director, MiSTEM Network Michigan Dept of Labor and Economic Development Rachell Bowerman Instructional Intervention Consultant for Curriculum/Intervention Michigan Dept of Education (MDE) ZOOM INFO Date: Monday (TODAY), May 22 Time: 4:30 pm Who:  Coaches, students, parents, school administration: so please PASS THIS INVITE ON Link to Zoom Meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83327891046?pwd=cUJjeXROellJaS9OVndLS0ZBclRaUT09 Meeting ID: 833Read More →

Join a Zoom meeting next Tuesday  at 4:30pm to learn how your students can earn high school credit for what they’ve learned through FIRST!!  Please pass this invite along to your parents and students, as well as your administration! The two experts on the topic will be our special speakers: Megan Schrauben Executive Director, MiSTEM Network Michigan Dept of Labor and Economic Development Rachell Bowerman Instructional Intervention Consultant for Curriculum/Intervention Michigan Dept of Education (MDE) ZOOM INFO Date: Tuesday, May 22 Time: 4:30 pm Who:  Coaches, students, parents, school administration: so please PASS THIS INVITE ON Link to Zoom Meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83327891046?pwd=cUJjeXROellJaS9OVndLS0ZBclRaUT09 Meeting ID: 833 2789 1046 Passcode: 293763 OneRead More →

As many of you probably heard, we had an issue with the division assignments. Please see the explanation below from Collin Fultz, Sr. Director of the FIRST Robotics Competition: The division randomizer was not built to handle specific pre-known event accommodation requirements. An example of a pre-known event accommodation may be that a team requires wheelchair access and only certain fields can accommodate that, but the randomizer placed the team on a field that won’t work for them.   The output of the division randomizer met the criteria as defined in the game manual when it was first run, and every effort was made to ensureRead More →

WHEN DO YOU FIND OUT IF YOUR TEAM QUALIFIES? Invitations for the State Championship will be released following the close of our last district event on Saturday evening.  The information can be found on our firstinmichigan.org website under high school events. Near the top, before the event list, is a link to the State Rankings. It will show there if you are qualified. 160 teams minus the Impact winners from our district events will qualify through their rankings. Impact winners qualify outright, without regard to their points/ranking. WHAT IF WE DON’T WANT TO ATTEND STATES? Please let us know if you plan to decline should you be offeredRead More →