FIRST Scholarships Awarded at Atlanta Championship

Judith Kearney
ASME Foundation

Ten high school students were selected last month as winners in this year's ASME FIRST Scholarships program. The scholarships, which are subsidized by the ASME Foundation and the ASME Auxiliary, are awarded each year at the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Championship event to students who participated on a robotics team and were nominated by an ASME member.

The scholarships, valued at $5,000 each, recognize and reward students graduating from high school whose FIRST experience has inspired an interest in pursuing an engineering career. They may be used for the first year of study in any ABET-accredited mechanical engineering or mechanical engineering technology program.

Former ASME President Dan Koenig (left), his wife Marilyn, Tim Swanson, Nina Webb of the ASME Foundation and Auxiliary, Kenan Paulus, Ricky Wilson and former ASME President Keith Thayer in Atlanta.

Among the 10 winning students were Hahna R. Alexander, from Ithaca High School, Ithaca, N.Y.; Samantha Catanzaro, from Staten Island Technical High School, New York; Kevin J. Fuhr, from Cypress Creek High School, Orlando, Fla.; Emily P. Griffen, from Villa Maria Academy, Exton, Pa.; and Bao-Nhat Nguyen, who attends North Quincy High School in Quincy, Mass.

Also selected as 2008 ASME FIRST Scholarship recipients were Kenan L. Paulus, of St. Mark's High School in Elkton, Md.; Alessandro Sambvani, of Cimarron Memorial High School in Las Vegas; Timothy W. Samson, of Kell High School in Acworth, Ga.; Alex David Trainer, of Jupiter Community Senior High School in Jupiter, Fla.; and Ricky Wilson, of Oxford Area High School, in Oxford, Pa.

Scholarship winners Tim Samson, Kell High School, Atlanta, Ricky Wilson of Oxford (Pa.) High School, and Kenan Paulus of St. Mark's High School in Elkton, Md., flank FIRST founder Dean Kamen.

Selected from a pool of 39 applicants, the students were ranked on two criteria. A contribution rating is based on the student's technical, leadership, and creative contribution based upon the nomination and other supporting information about student activities. An academic merit rating, based on the student's grade-point-average (GPA) information, is also considered by the committee of six judges.

ASME has had an agreement of affiliation with the FIRST organization dating back to 1996, and supports FIRST as an outstanding means for engineers to be positively involved with young people and promote hands-on understanding of engineering. Many ASME staff and members throughout the country give countless hours to FIRST teams as mentors, volunteers, and judges.

Tim Swanson, recipient of a 2008 ASME Auxiliary FIRST Clarke Scholarship, gets an autograph from Woodie Flowers, Professor Emeritus from MIT and FIRST Executive Advisory Board Chairman.

While ASME's involvement with FIRST has been largely with high school students, activities actually begin much earlier, with the youngest future engineers (ages 6–9) participating in the Junior FIRST Lego League. Students from ages 9–14 take part in FIRST Lego League teams, which each year take on an adventurous challenge based on current, real-world issues that dares them to test, explore, and expand new horizons.

For high school students, the FIRST Tech Challenge is a mid-level robotics competition offering the traditional challenge of a FIRST competition, but with a more accessible and affordable robotics kit. Finally, the FIRST Robotics teams, also for high school students, combine technology with sports in competitions that redefine winning. Teams are rewarded not solely for scoring points, but on excellence in every area from safety to team spirit.

To get involved with FIRST, visit www.usfirst.org. For information on nominating a FIRST Robotics Team member for an ASME Foundation/Auxiliary scholarship, call Marcelle Austin at (212) 591-7733.

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