by Mark Wilcox, Tech Today
11 of this spring’s high school graduates, five from Michigan and six from Wisconsin or Minnesota, are the inaugural recipients of FIRST Robotics Scholarships to Michigan Tech. These exceptional students have actively competed on a FIRST Robotics Competition or FIRST Tech Challenge during high school.
The FIRST Robotics website calls its competitions “The Varsity Sport for the Mind,” combining the competition and thrill of interscholastic athletics with the rigors and discipline of science and technology.
William Roberts, director of student financial services at Michigan Tech, says the first-ever scholarship program is a collaboration between the University and FIRST Robotics. He says with these scholarships, Michigan Tech has an additional tool to attract exceptional students.
Describing the first class of FIRST Robotics Scholarship winners, Roberts says, “These are world-class students who will make an immediate impact here at Michigan Tech.” Roberts says the 11 scholarship winners were chosen from more than 80 applicants. He says students who compete in FIRST Robotics are typically students who thrive at Michigan Tech.
“These students come with experience in hands-on experiential learning. They are precisely what we are looking for at Michigan Tech,” Roberts says.
Five Michigan students have been awarded $5,000 Michigan Tech FRIST Robotics Scholarships. These annual scholarships are renewable for four years of full-time undergraduate study, based on renewal criteria. Among the in-state recipients is Houghton High School’s Peter Lund who competed in the FIRST Robotics World Championship in St. Louis.
Four students from Wisconsin and two from Minnesota have been awarded scholarships valued at $14,000 per year.