how can I win inspire award and what outreach can I do
To win the Inspire Award, which is the highest honor a team can receive, you must present your team as a complete package. According to Game Manual 0, this means your team must have a highly competitive robot, a professional and thorough engineering portfolio, and meaningful outreach. You must act as an ambassador for FIRST, demonstrating Gracious Professionalism both on the field and in the pits. During your judging interview, you should tell a unified story that connects your robot's design, your outreach efforts, and your team's overall development. The FTC Competition Manual states that to be eligible for this top award, you must submit an engineering portfolio and be a strong contender in three distinct award categories: Machine, Creativity, and Innovation (MCI); Team Attributes (TA); and the Think Award. Additionally, your team must show that every member contributes to your success in a positive and inclusive environment, and you must successfully share your experiences with the judges.
When planning outreach, Game Manual 0 advises focusing on activities your team genuinely cares about rather than just trying to win awards. You can establish outreach by cold-emailing STEM professionals for mentorship, researching and exhibiting at local science fairs, or demonstrating your robot at elementary and middle school STEM nights. You can also volunteer for STEM activities, visit local robotics labs, or connect with other FIRST teams. This can include asking experienced teams for guidance or mentoring rookie teams by offering advice and portfolio feedback. The FTC Competition Manual notes that impactful outreach should also focus on expanding the FIRST community by actively recruiting new participants, coaches, mentors, or volunteers who have never participated before. Additionally, you can build partnerships with local STEM professionals to learn new technical skills, such as consulting a computer vision expert to help solve a specific robot programming challenge.
To make your outreach effective for judging, Game Manual 0 recommends dedicating about two to three pages of your 16-page portfolio to these activities, keeping your general community outreach, mentoring, and STEM connections in distinct sections. When documenting your reach, you must follow the specific definitions in the official game rules for terms like "mentored" or "reached." Rather than using a general venue headcount, keep a rough log of the actual people who interacted with your team, as judges may ask how you verified these numbers. You should also maintain a separate log of all events, including who attended and their hours, and follow up with any interested contacts you meet. Finally, outline your outreach strategy in a formal business plan that details your team's budget, vision, and growth goals.