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PRINTER'S NO. 499
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE RESOLUTION
No.
86
Session of
2019
INTRODUCED BY ROTHMAN, MASSER, DiGIROLAMO, CALTAGIRONE, BURNS,
KORTZ, MILLARD, RYAN, NEILSON, READSHAW, KINSEY, BERNSTINE,
MARKOSEK, OBERLANDER, DELOZIER, GLEIM, SAYLOR AND HELM,
FEBRUARY 19, 2019
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
FEBRUARY 19, 2019
A RESOLUTION
Recognizing the immense value of robotics and STEM education;
and applauding the efforts of Cumberland County's FIRST Tech
Challenge team, The Javengers, for their outreach to the
underserved community to advance interest in robotics and
STEM education.
WHEREAS, The FIRST Tech Challenge is an international
robotics competition for middle and high school students, which
is sponsored by the not-for-profit organization, FIRST; and
WHEREAS, FIRST is an acronym meaning, "For Inspiration and
Recognition of Science and Technology"; and
WHEREAS, FIRST Tech Challenge teams design, build, program
and operate robots of their own design, costing thousands of
dollars, to play a floor game in an alliance format; and
WHEREAS, Guided by adult coaches and mentors, students
participating in the FIRST Tech Challenge develop STEM skills
and practice engineering principles, while realizing the value
of hard work, innovation and sharing ideas; and
WHEREAS, Since 1989, FIRST has inspired and motivated
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students around the world to pursue education and careers in
STEM; and
WHEREAS, Each year, over 615,000 students from 90 countries
compete in over 3,000 robotics competitions supported by FIRST;
and
WHEREAS, Not only does FIRST promote STEM for students, FIRST
also inspires future engineers to share their knowledge with
their younger peers as mentors; and
WHEREAS, Students who participate in FIRST programs have
access to $80 million in college scholarships; and
WHEREAS, The Javengers is a FIRST Tech Challenge team located
in Mechanicsburg with team members from Cumberland County and
Dauphin County; and
WHEREAS, The Javengers are competing in the 2019 Pennsylvania
championships for the FIRST Tech Challenge and have won several
awards at both the regional and State levels of the FIRST Tech
Challenge; and
WHEREAS, The Javengers promote STEM to minority and women's
groups that lack appropriate representation in the STEM industry
by presenting at Girls' World Expo, holding free robotics camps
for girls and teaching special needs students in the Harrisburg
School District how to build and operate robots; and
WHEREAS, The Javengers have instituted and mentored FIRST
programs within this Commonwealth and abroad by:
(1) starting and mentoring five new FIRST Lego League
teams and three new Junior FIRST Lego League teams;
(2) holding their fourth annual robotics camp for both
boys and girls;
(3) mentoring several other FIRST Tech Challenge and
FIRST Lego League teams; and
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(4) remotely starting a robotics club in an elementary
school located in rural India by donating Lego robots to them
and demonstrating how to build and program the robots;
and
WHEREAS, One hundred percent of The Javengers' alumni are
studying STEM-related majors at institutions such as Johns
Hopkins University, Dartmouth College, Georgia Institute of
Technology, Duke University, University of Pittsburgh and Penn
State University; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize the
immense value of robotics and STEM education; and be it further
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives applaud the
efforts of Cumberland County's FIRST Tech Challenge team, The
Javengers, for their outreach to the underserved community to
advance interest in robotics and STEM education.
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