Nov. 4, 2009 (Business Wire) -- AZFirst, an Arizona 501(c)(3) organization supporting FIRST^® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) after-school robotics programs in Arizona, and DeVry University are proud to present a series of workshops dedicated to the improvement and education of Arizona FIRST Robotics teams. The workshops will take place Saturday, November 14, 2009, from 9–11 a.m. at the DeVry University main campus, located at 2149 W. Dunlap Avenue in Phoenix. Students may register by contacting Cheryl Bunting, director of community outreach for DeVry University, at 602-870-9222 ext. 364 or via e-mail at phx-events@devry.edu.

FIRST provides students with an opportunity to develop life-impacting skills, including project management, team building and critical thinking through hands-on learning. The AZFirst/DeVry workshops are designed to assist students in preparing for the upcoming FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) Arizona Regional 2010 (March 12–13 at Veterans’ Memorial Coliseum). High-school students on participating teams will receive a kit of parts in January, and then have six weeks to design, build and test robots to compete in the competition. Any student who participates on a FIRST team is eligible to apply for over $11 million in scholarships.

The AZFirst/DeVry workshops will be 55 minutes in length, and will cover topics such as pneumatics, electrical, LabVIEW programming, Rookie Workshop, Google Docs, programming, fundraising/marketing, project management, team spirit and more. Carol Popovich, FIRST community relations representative, said, “AZFirst is pleased to collaborate with DeVry University to offer these workshops, which will enhance Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education for Arizona FIRST robotics students and teachers.”

AZFirst is the recipient of a $150,000 matching-funds grant from Science Foundation Arizona (SFAz) and The Stardust Foundation. Microchip Technology Inc. is the Organizing Sponsor for the 2010 FRC Arizona Regional. Other sponsors include Wells Fargo Bank and BAE Systems. More sponsors are currently being recruited to support this competition. For more information about sponsoring a team, AZFirst or FIRST in Arizona, contact Carol Popovich at 480-792-7938 or first@microchip.com. For more information about Science Foundation Arizona, contact Terry Koch (pronounced “Cook”) at 602-682-2800 or tkoch@sfaz.org.