SBPLI FIRST Lego League

Contact: John Zaher, PRMG

(631) 297-8592
Janet Anderson, SBPLI-LI FIRST

(631) 366-0749

January 17, 2006

Long Island Students Explore Our World in "Ocean Odyssey"

Teams Solve Real-World Problems through Robot Design and Research at
SBPLI-LIFIRST LEGO League Tournament to be held at Longwood High School on Sunday, January 22nd

Event Marks 2nd Annual LEGO League Tournament on Long Island

(Melville, New York) – Children from Long Island have been tasked with the challenge and excitement of designing and building an original robot in the SBPLI-LIFIRST LEGO League program. This weekend, eight weeks of research and design will culminate in the SBPLI-LI FIRST LEGO League Tournament where teams of children and mentors will demonstrate their problem-solving skills, creative thinking, teamwork, competitive play, sportsmanship and sense of community. Among the participants are 9 to 14 year old boys and girls from 30 elementary and middle schools on Long Island. This action-packed event is free and open to the public. The tournament will take place at Longwood High School on Sunday, January 22nd from 11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

This year’s Challenge, “OCEAN ODYSSEY”, calls for teams to research and present robotics technology solutions to help ensure the health, diversity and productivity of the world's oceans for present and future generations. The competition is judged in five areas: research and presentation; robot performance; technical mechanics of the robot’s construction; teamwork; and gracious professionalism. The highest honor will go to the team that best exemplifies the spirit and values of the program. Every participant will receive a medallion to commemorate his/her experience and dedication to the eight-week process.

Founded by inventor Dean Kamen, FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) was created to inspire young people’s interest and participation in science and technology. FIRST LEGO League is an international program for 9 to 14 year-old children created in partnership between FIRST and the LEGO Company in 1998. Each September, FIRST LEGO League announces the annual Challenge to teams, which engages them in authentic scientific research and hands-on robotics design. Using LEGO MINDSTORMS technologies and LEGO bricks, children work alongside adult mentors to design, build and program robots to solve real-world challenges. After 8 intense weeks, the competition season culminates at high-energy, sports-like tournaments.

Since its beginning, FIRST has had a positive impact on students and academic communities. “We need to show kids that it’s more fun to design and create a video game than it is to play one,” said Dean Kamen, FIRST Founder. “In FIRST LEGO League, kids discover career possibilities and learn to make positive contributions to society.” Currently in its seventh year, the FIRST LEGO League anticipates its largest season ever with almost 7500 teams from around the world competing in qualifying events and tournaments.

Fred Breithut, Founder & Chairman of School-Business Partnership of Long Island said, “We are pleased to coordinate the Long Island FIRST LEGO League Tournament. It is extension of the FIRST Robotics Competition. Together these programs are opening a world of technology, science and engineering to so many Long Island students, helping to build our high tech workforce of the future.”

For more information on the 2006 competition please call (631) 366-0749.

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 the support of many of the world’s most well known companies, the non-profit organization hosts the FIRST Robotics Competition for high school students and the FIRST LEGO League for children 9 -14 years old. To learn more about FIRST, go to www.usfirst.org.

About the School-Business Partnerships of Long Island

The SBPLI-LIFIRST LEGO League Tournament is coordinated by the School-Business Partnerships of Long Island (SBPLI). 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 70 partnerships have been formed. In 1999, SBPLI brought the SBPLI-LI FIRST Robotics Competition to Long Island, which has grown to 36 teams of high school students participating at Hofstra University on March 23-25, 2006. This is the second year in which SBPLI is coordinating the FIRST LEGO League event on Long Island. For more information about SBPLI visit www.sbpli-lifirst.org.

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