PTC Broadens Partnership with First to Launch New First Lego League Teams in Las Vegas

After School All Star Program Receives Funding to Build Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Skills for At-Risk Youth during PlanetPTC Live 2011 Conference.

PTC, The Product Development Company®, today announced it is teaming up with FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) and the After School All-Stars to launch several new FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL®) teams in Las Vegas, Nevada. The After School All-Stars is a national organization that offers after-school programming to at risk youth.

PTC is making a donation through the FIRST organization to bring the excitement of engineering to FLL students in the 3rd to 8th grades. These students will use real-world engineering principals to build LEGO-based robots that complete tasks on a thematic playing surface. The students will design, build, test and program robots using LEGO MINDSTORMS® technology by applying real-world math and science concepts. Additionally, the students will understand how to work as a team to learn critical thinking, team-building and presentation skills.

"The skills and life lessons these students will learn from designing, competing and working as a team in the FLL program will show the kids what is possible when building an education and career path around Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)," said Jackie Locks, executive editor, After School All-Stars Las Vegas. "We are happy to have had PTC and FIRST make this opportunity available to the After School All-Stars organization."

With millions of dollars already committed to FIRST, PTC is a strategic partner of FIRST through its cumulative support of teams, annual in-kind donations, resources, technology, design and collaboration software, training, and employee involvement as well as contributions across the FIRST family of programs. PTC has been a Crown Supplier to the FIRST® Robotics Competition (FRC®) for the fifth consecutive year and the official CAD and Collaboration Sponsor to the FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC®) for the third year, providing free software, including CreoTM, Mathcad® and Windchill®, to participating teams.

"Together with PTC's 1,200 customers and partners attending PlanetPTC Live Las Vegas this week, we were able to raise funds as a way to give back to the Las Vegas community," said Robin Saitz, senior vice president, solutions marketing and communications and FIRST Executive Sponsor, PTC. "PTC's goal is to inspire young people to pursue STEM education for better engineering career opportunities, and this is another great way to create that inspiration."

"Students must be empowered to train themselves so schools can focus on education," said Woodie Flowers, FIRST Executive Advisory Board Chairman Professor Emeritus, Massachusetts Institute Technology. "FIRST is a powerful vehicle for this kind of real education because it provides the framework to work with students, rather than lecturing to them, to develop life-long skills of self-confidence, gracious professionalism and a drive for excellence. I am excited that PTC and FIRST can make this opportunity available to the After School All Stars organization."