Hello Teams,
National registrations for the Animal Allies season are now underway. Illinois registrations will be open on August 1st. Field set up kits will begin to ship at the beginning of August and will be shipped on a first come, first serve basis. The Animal Allies challenge will be announced on August 30th.
We will offer coach training sessions again this summer in various locations throughout the state. Details will be announced in the next few weeks.
We are aware that many corporations throughout the state offer matching donations or sponsorships for teams that are coached or mentored by their employees. Examples are Boeing, Motorola, Baxter, John Deere and Caterpillar. To determine if there may be funding available for your team, we recommend asking the parents and/or mentors to contact their employers.
We have received the following specific information with regard to Boeing-mentored teams.
- Boeing is adding FIRST Lego League to its suite of program grants offered to Boeing-mentored teams in For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST) competitions.
The addition of FIRST Lego League expands the company’s funding opportunities to engage younger students in robotics and engineering concepts. Boeing also is a supporter of the FIRST Tech Challenge and the FIRST Robotics Competition.
Boeing employees can get involved with FIRST Lego League by mentoring a team. Mentors will work with up to 10 children (ages 9 to 14) throughout the year to research a real-world problem and develop a solution using Lego Mindstorms as a construction base. Employees do not need to be in an engineering field to mentor.
The company will provide grants to cover the $225 FLL registration fee for teams mentored by a Boeing employee or retiree. Current and new Boeing mentors are encouraged to put together teams before the end of the school year. The internal, online, Boeing FIRST Grant Application tool will be available to employees May 4 through June 30, and includes applications for all three categories of FIRST competition: FLL, FTC and FRC.
We have received the following specific information with regard to John Deere-sponsored teams.
- Applications for John Deere FIRST team grants for the 2016-2017 season are now open for FLL, FTC, and FRC using the link below. Applications for FLL Jr. will open on 8Aug16.
www.JohnDeere.com/Inspire
The grants are available for participants within a 50 mile radius of 14 U.S John Deere home communities for all four FIRST programs. Additionally, teams can apply for a grant in any U.S. location if they have a John Deere employee or retiree committed to actively supporting their team regardless of location. For Illinois, this includes Champaign, Quad Cities and Dubuque, Iowa (which includes parts of NW Illinois).
Teams must apply and get approval for the John Deere / FIRST grant prior to completing (paying for) registration for the 2016-2017 FIRST season. You can register with FIRST, but should not pay for your registration as you may potentially forfeit your grant.
We are looking forward to the Animal Allies season!
The FLL Planning Committee
