FIRST Dean's List Award - What it's all about!

Attention astronauts, we have an important update to the current mission at hand. The Dean�s List Award recognizes the leaders and ambassadors from each FIRST Tech Challenge Team. It awards the Captain Kirk�s in our world today. The Dean�s List Award first took off in 2010, when Dean Kamen himself realized that for FIRST to fulfill its mission of inspiring youth, he needed leaders that exemplify the core values of FIRSTwho could help spread the word and fuel the mission of FIRST. These leaders are the captains of their own destinies, ignoring the limitations set by space. They would consist of students already inspired by FIRST programs to make sure that generations to come are able to experience the positive impact of FIRST. As with the Dean�s List program that may already be in your school, the FIRSTDean�s List identifies the captains within FIRSTwho will fuel the mission we work to uphold.

Each FIRST Tech Challenge team can nominate up to two students who are in the 10^th or 11^th grade that exemplify leadership qualities, an entrepreneurial spirit, and are ambassadors of FIRST and FIRST Tech Challenge. The entire FIRST Tech Challenge team should work together to determine which two of their teammates they feel should be nominated for the Dean�s List Award.Below is a full list of the criteria for the award:

• Demonstrates leadership and commitment to the ideals of FIRST

• Interest in and passion for a long-term commitment to FIRST and its ideals

• Overall individual contribution to their team

• Technical expertise and passion

• Entrepreneurship and creativity

• Ability to motivate and lead fellow crew members

• Ability to effectively increase awareness of FIRST in their school and community

Upon nomination, these students are automatically considered Dean�s List Award Semi-Finalists. Each student will receive a 5-7 minute interview at the event where they are competing. At each Regional Championship, the Finalists for that region are announced. All Finalists are invited to World Championship, where the 10 winners of the Dean�s List Award are announced.

The Dean�s List Award also receives support from some pretty impressive colleges. MIT, WPI, and Yale have been proud supporters of the award, and look forward to seeing Dean�s List applicants each year!

To submit Dean�s List nominations, you will need to log into www.firstinspires.org. We commonly receive questions about deadlines to nominate for this award. The nominations must be made for the event where the team will be competing. If your team is competing at a Qualifying Tournament in December of 2018, the deadline for the nomination will be November 15^th at 11:59pm EST. More detailed information about how to submit the nominations, deadlines, and which event to apply to can be found in the Dean�s List Submission Guide. 

So, there you have it! Make sure to nominate your exceptional 10^th and 11^thgrade students today! Please send any questions about the award or submissions to FTCDeansList@firstinspires.org.