School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI) announces the 2009 season for the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics competition will kick off on January 9, 2010, starting at 9:30 a.m. More than 40 Long Island teams will meet at Room 100 in the Jacob Javits Center at Stony Brook University to learn about the game.

Teams will receive their instructions via satellite transmission from FIRST headquarters in New Hampshire. They will then pick up their kits of parts to begin the 42-day period of designing and building their robots. They will compete at the Long Island Regional championship, which will take place March 25-27, 2010 at Hofstra University. Some of them will compete at the 2010 National Championship event at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta from April 15-17.

As they construct their robots, students will learn important concepts such as teamwork, problem solving and healthy competition. They will also gain an interest in mathematics and engineering as they graduate high school and go on to college. From there, they will enter the fields of science, engineering or technology.

"The FIRST Robotics Competition is not just about the design and building of sophisticated robots. These students also develop maturity, professionalism, teamwork and mentoring skills that enrich their lives," said Fred Breithut, President of School-Business Partnerships of Long Island (SBPLI) and sponsor of the Long Island FIRST Regional Robotics Competition. "Many of our students develop an affinity for their science and math courses, go on to study engineering, technology or science in college, and also pursue employment opportunities with sponsoring companies."