THE CONCEPT OF THE INITIATIVE

PRIOR has an all year around program.  PRIOR identifies and select students from all levels to participate in the Summer Camp.  Then in August and September, more students are selected to form teams of 4 students that will represent each school interested to participate.  The students that participated in the summer camp are part of the team of 4 students that will be trained and compete in the Technology Challenge. The challenge is different every year.

SUMMER CAMP

One of the four students from each school is selected to attend the summer camp in representation of his/her school. During the summer the rules and concept of the game is explained. The cost is $275 (includes one PRIOR polo shirt).

THE TECHNOLOGY CHALLENGE

   PRIOR host and celebrate an annual robotics competition known as “Technology Challenge”. Every year the concept and rules of the competition change. After the summer camp, For 10 Saturdays, starting at the end of September thru December, all the students selected receive an intensive training on concepts of physics, math, pre-engineering, programming, structures, technologies, research and team work.  During the training period the students built and program a robot to perform specific task for a final competition.  During the competition the teams of 4 students form alliances with other schools to compete against other alliances in our organized environment. The development of these robots serves to teach and inspire students in concepts of STEM. These events are fun for the students, their mentors, their schools, and have proven to be a launching pad for the future engineering minds of Puerto Rico.

During this period, other regional events are been held throughout the world.  The top performers of this event will be invited to represent their school and Puerto Rico in the World Championship Event held in the United States.  

      Thanks to partial subsidy by sponsors, we have been able to keep the participation a fee per student (includes PRIOR polo shirt).  This fee may be lower to public schools depending on government funding availability.

WHO QUALIFIES

The program is open to K-12 school-age children from private and public schools.

1.   We work through a representative of the school to help us identify candidates. 

2.   The school must assign a mentor (teacher, could be a parent, etc.) to support the students during their training and project.

3.   The student must have a current GPA exceeding 3.0 or must have demonstrated a special ability in a related field.

4.   The students pre-selected apply on-line through this web page.

5.   PRIOR will select 4 students from each school to form a team.

To apply, please visit our application page.