Team Grants

Eligibility Criteria

1. The Team must be located in Pennsylvania.
2. The Team must be registered for the current season through the FIRST® Registration Dashboard as FIRST Tech Challenge Team.
3. More than 50% of the team are middle school age students, AND
4. Meets one or more of the following: 
   • 50% or more are from communities underrepresented in STEM, which includes Hispanic/Latino, Black/African American, and Indigenous youth
   • 50% or more are female
   • 50% or more are underserved based on low income. In the U.S. this is based on the % eligible for free and reduced lunch for the school or non-profit overall
   • 50% or more of the team’s students are in a Title 1 school
   • 50% or more of the team’s students are in rural areas. Reference the Pennsylvania Department of Education Urban-Centric and Metro-Centric Locale Codes Excel document (see the Pennsylvania Department of Education> Data and Reporting> School Locale webpage for details)

Grant Amount

• Initial Grant: Pennsylvania FIRST Tech Challenge rookie or veteran team: $4,000 + tuition for up to two (2) FIRST Certified Professional Development courses ($600 max / course).
• Renewal Grant: Pennsylvania FIRST Tech Challenge veteran team: $1500 + tuition for up to one (1) FIRST Certified Professional Development course ($600 max / course).
• Additionally, both initial and renewal grants will pay the event registration fee for a Google.org grant recipient team advancing to the Pennsylvania State Championship, the FIRST Championship, or a FIRST Tech Challenge Premier Event.

Post-grant Requirements

Teams accepting this grant agree to perform the following post-grant items:

1. Pay the FIRST Team Registration Fee within two weeks of receiving the grant (if not already paid).
2. Participate in one or more Pennsylvania FTC in-person events, including but not limited to workshops, scrimmages, and/or qualifiers, in the current season.
3. Keep copies of all receipts and other paperwork associated with grant expenditures for a minimum of three years, and shall provide copies of those records upon request. 
4. Provide a grant utilization report at the end of the season that the grant was awarded.

Team Support Grant

Eligibility Requirements

Teams must meet the following eligibility criteria to apply for a Team Support Grant:

• Team must be a rookie FIRST Tech Challenge team with an official FIRST team number.
• Team must be located in one of the following PA counties: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Cambria, Clarion, Crawford, Erie, Fayette, Forest, Greene, Indiana, Jefferson, Lawrence, Mercer, Somerset, Venango, Warren, Washington.
• Team must have two lead coaches identified.
• Both team lead coaches must have completed their FIRST Youth Protection Program screening and training as identified in their FIRST Dashboard. There must not be any outstanding items.
• Both team lead coaches must have obtained and submitted their Pennsylvania youth protection clearances as identified in their FIRST Dashboard. There must not be any outstanding items.
• Funds must be received by a school or nonprofit entity. Funds will not be paid to an individual.
• The team may not apply for or have already received the Google.org grant administered by Pennsylvania FIRST Robotics

Recipient teams must fulfill the following responsibilities:

• Register students with FIRST (target 5-10 students).
• Compete at two or more events in the current FIRST Tech Challenge season. For this grant, events are defined as FIRST Tech Challenge Scrimmages, Qualifiers, Championships, and Premiere Events.
• Use granted funds for the purchase of robot parts, tools, uniforms, competition registration fees, competition travel expenses, or other appropriate team uses.
• No organizational or administrative overhead can be claimed through this team support grant
• Ensure their team registration fee is paid to FIRST within two weeks after grant funds are received
• Provide a grant utilization report at the end of the season that the grant was awarded.

Grant Amount

The grant amount is $4,000 for rookie teams. Grant funds are limited and are distributed on a first come, first served basis.

Coach Support Stipend

Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria to apply for a Coach Support Grant:

• Applicant is registered with FIRST as Coach 1 or Coach 2 of the Team.
• Applicant’s Team has applied for a 2026-2027 PDE Western PA Team Support grant through Pennsylvania FIRST Robotics.
• Applicant must have completed their FIRST Youth Protection Program screening and training as identified in their FIRST Dashboard. There must not be any outstanding items.
• Applicant must have obtained and submitted their Pennsylvania YPP Clearance as identified in their FIRST Dashboard. There must not be any outstanding items.
• The Team’s regular meetings are held after school.
• The Applicant is NOT compensated by their school or team organization for some or all of the Team meeting time.
• Application limits:
• No more than ONE Applicant will be considered per FIRST Tech Challenge team.
• No individual will be awarded multiple Coach Support grants.

Grant Amount

Pennsylvania FIRST Robotics will be offering $1,500 stipends to eligible adults who actively coach teams receiving the PDE Team Support grant. Grant funds are limited and are distributed on a first come, first served basis.

Half the stipend will be paid in January 2027. The remainder of the stipend will be paid in May/June 2027 once all Team Support grant requirements are satisfied. Recipients will be paid as independent contractors of Pennsylvania FIRST Robotics.

Coach Training Grants

Grants for coach training are available, falling into two categories:

• Teams or organizations wishing to run a training event for FIRST coaches may request funding to support their event. Events receiving funding must welcome interested Western PA FIRST coaches free of charge. Teams or organizations do not need to be recipients of Team Support grants to be eligible.
• Recipients of Coach Support grants, and Coaches 1 and 2 of a team receiving a Team Support Grant, may request funding to defray the costs associated with registration or travel to FIRST Professional Development, FIRST Mentor Conference, or similar opportunities. A maximum of $1,500 will be awarded per individual per FTC season.

Requests for coach training funds will be approved on a rolling basis until funds are exhausted.