The Long Island Regional FIRST^® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition season will kick off at the Krasnoff Theater at LIU Post, located at 720 Northern Boulevard, Brookville, NY on Saturday, January 7, 2023 at 9:00 a.m. FIRST Robotics Competition teams from across Long Island will gather in anticipation of learning about the upcoming season’s robotics competition. 

Knowing only that this year’s theme is CHARGED UP^SM presented by Haas, the local FIRST teams, and the 4,000 teams representing 35 countries around the world, will receive this year’s game rules via a video feed that will be broadcast at the same time across the globe. 

During the Long Island Kick Off, FIRST^® Long Island, which presents the event, will treat students and parents to presentations from its members and guests regarding the impact of the program on local communities and businesses. Towards the close of the event, each team will collect its kit of parts to construct a 120-pound robot. 

This year, two regional tournaments will be held as part of the FIRST Long Island Regional FIRST Robotics Competition. They will take place on March 20-25, 2023 at Hofstra University’s David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex. Each event will serve as a separate regional, with different teams competing in separate alliances and tournament rounds. Some of the teams set to participate in the local regionals will move on to compete at the 2023 FIRST Championship in Houston.

Leading up to the regionals, FIRST Long Island students will work with engineering mentors to apply concepts of math and science learned in the classroom to build their robots. Students will also learn important concepts such as teamwork, problem solving and healthy competition. Many FIRST Long Island students use these skills while pursuing science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) studies and careers.

Over the years, FIRST students from Long Island have received millions of dollars in scholarships for higher education. This year, there are 200 scholarship providers who will give students participating in FIRST access to more than $80 million worth of scholarships.

“We are thrilled to get our 2023 season underway and are looking forward to another great kick-off event,” says Larry Toonkel, Co-Director, FIRST Robotics Competition, FIRST Long Island. “We are also excited to bring the Long Island Regional back as more teams are looking to be part of our annual event.”

For more information on FIRST Long Island, please visit www.firstlongisland.org.

LIST OF LONG ISLAND TEAMS SCHEDULED TO ATTEND THE 2023 FIRST^® ROBOTICS COMPETITION KICK OFF

January 7, 2023 at LIU Post’s Krasnoff Theater