FIRST Indiana Robotics is a robotics community that prepares young people for the future through a suite of inclusive, team-based robotics programs for ages 4-18 (PreK-12) that can be facilitated in school or in structured after-school programs in Indiana. Boosted by the FIRST^® global support system of volunteers, educators, and sponsors that include over 200 of the Fortune 500 companies, our teams operate under a signature set of FIRST Core Values to conduct research, fundraise, design, build, and showcase their achievements during annual challenges.

FIRST, an acronym meaning “For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology”, is an international not-for-profit organization founded by accomplished inventor Dean Kamen in 1989. The organization has a proven impact on STEM learning, interest, and skill-building well beyond high school and is one of the world’s leading organizations providing experiential workforce development skills for STEM industries. Participants and alumni of FIRST programs gain access to education and career discovery opportunities, connections to exclusive scholarships and employers, and a place in the FIRST community for life.

As the local nonprofit serving as the FIRST program delivery organization for Indiana, FIRST Indiana Robotics believes that our future is built better together and improving our world starts with our youth. Through mentorship partnered with hands-on learning, problem-solving connected to community engagement, and core values applied in times of intense competition, this program is about more than robots; it’s a robotics community that is preparing young people for life.

The mission of FIRST Indiana Robotics is to inspire young people to be science and technology leaders and innovators, by engaging them in exciting mentor-based programs that build science, engineering, and technology skills, that inspire innovation, and that foster well-rounded life capabilities including self-confidence, communication, and leadership. Expanding access to the program across the state boosts the number of Hoosier students entering the Indiana tech workforce and gives them the skills they need to thrive.

“To transform our culture by creating a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and technology leaders.”

– Dean Kamen, Founder, FIRST