Ten high school seniors receive FIRST scholarships from ASME

ASME awarded a total of $50,000 in scholarships to 10 high school seniors who participated in the 2006 FIRST Robotics Competition championships, held late last month in Atlanta.

More than 340 teams comprising 8,500 students participated in the 2006 championship competition, held April 27-29 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. This year, the FIRST contest challenged students to design and build a robot that could fire foam balls through hoop targets and plow them into floor goals, as well as to program a robotic vision system to navigate the robot.

William Scott Goehringer	Matthew Richard Jones
Chase J. Kramer	Nathaniel A. Laverdure
Agam Patel	Brian Plattenburg

At the event, the Society awarded ASME/ASME Auxiliary FIRST Clarke Scholarships to 10 students whose participation in the robotics competition has inspired them to pursue an engineering career. Those recipients were Christopher Domanti of Fairport, N.Y.; William Scott Goehringer of Lutherville, Md.; Roy J. Gross, III of Lansdale, Pa.; Grant G. Hanson of Tulsa, Okla.; Matthew Richard Jones of Clover, S.C.; Chase J. Kramer of Philadelphia; Nathaniel A. Laverdure of Oak Hill, Va.; Agam Patel of Hockessin, Del.; Brian Plattenburg of Marietta, Ga.; and Brian Schmalzried of Erie, Pa.

Each student received $5,000 to be applied to the first year of study in an accredited mechanical engineering or mechanical engineering technology program. The ASME/ASME Auxiliary FIRST Clarke Scholarship, issued by the ASME Foundation and the ASME Auxiliary, is funded by the bequest of Lucille V. Clarke, the daughter of ASME Honorary Member Charles W.E. Clarke and Lucy Clarke.

FIRST (For the Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), now in its 15th year, is an exciting, multinational competition that teams high school students with professionals, who serve as mentors, and with other local community sponsors, to work on engineering design challenges.

The competition aims to build self-confidence, knowledge and life skills among the high school students while also motivating them to pursue opportunities in science, technology and engineering.

"Our country is in the middle of a crisis in science and technology, and FIRST is trying to change how our culture views these fields," said inventor, ASME member and FIRST founder Dean Kamen. "We're helping young people see scientists and engineers in the same light as their traditional heroes in sports and entertainment."

In 2006, more than 1,130 teams made up of over 28,000 students participated in regional competitions during March and April. Each year, members of ASME support the FIRST Robotics Competition as judges and mentors and in other voluntary roles.

Check back with ASME News Online next month for additional coverage of FIRST, including a rundown of the winning teams.

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