New England Institute of Technology will sponsor the seventh annual FIRST® (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Tech Challenge on Saturday, Feb. 9 from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Serving as Rhode Island’s FIRST® Tech Challenge Affiliate Partner, NEIT will host 30 high school robotics teams at the college’s Center for Automotive Technology, located at 101 Access Road, Warwick.

Accomplished inventor Dean Kamen founded FIRST® in 1989 to inspire an appreciation of science and technology in students through the fun of robotics. The goal is to engage students in order to develop problem solving, critical thinking and innovative reasoning skills using custom-designed robots. The participating Rhode Island high school teams will compete for the chance to travel to the FIRST® World Championship in Atlanta, Ga.

New England Tech will serve as the central point of contact for all participating high schools as well as various after-school robotic teams. The event is free and open to the public. For more information on the FIRST® Tech Challenge, contact Erin Flynn, manager of admissions outreach and events at New England Tech at 739-5000, ext. 3462 or by email at eflynn@neit.edu. To learn more about the FIRST® organization, visit www.usfirst.org.