The New Hampshire-based robotics and science challenge organization FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) has boosted the money available as college scholarships, including from UConn, to $14.7 million for 2011, Mass High Tech reports.
FIRST, which was founded by inventor Dean Kamen, added 16 new backers to the scholarship fund to get the boost. The new number marks a $2.4 million increase over the scholarships available in 2010 for college-bound FIRST challenge or program participants, officials of the Manchester, N.H., nonprofit said.
That brings to total to 146 colleges, universities, corporations, and associations that support the FIRST mission by donating merit-based scholarship opportunities to eligible students. In 2010, FIRST officials said, nearly one in three applicants was offered a FIRST Scholarship. Of those, 25 percent were female.
Northeast Utilities Inc. and United Technologies Corp., both in Hartford, are among FIRST’s corporate sponsors.
Any high-school junior or senior participating in the FIRST Robotics Competition or FIRST Tech Challenge is eligible to apply for one or more FIRST Scholarships, which can range in value from full four-year tuition to under $1,000. Most applications are due between January and April.
Among the new FIRST Scholarship Providers are the University of Connecticut and the University of Massachusetts Amherst/PTC. Others include: Baker University; Clemson University; College of the Atlantic; Columbia University; Eastern Washington University; Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México ; Itasca Community College; Maryville University; Mineral Area College; Portland State University; Randolph College; St. Mary’s University; Texas A&M University; and University of Iowa.
