Athens City Schools will see more than 200 additional spots for students to participate in robotics programs.

Thanks to a grant from the LEGO Foundation, Athens Schools FIRST LEGO League will have the materials it needs to expand.

Athens Renaissance teacher Taylor Whisenant wrote the grant to bring this program to other Athens City Schools. Whisenant, who is a designated representative for FIRST in Alabama to manage the FIRST LEGO League program for the state, wants FIRST robotics to be accessible to all students.

“This grant allows an additional 264 students to participate in the FIRST LEGO League program, in addition to the existing program at ARS for 72 students,” Whisenant said.

“I wanted to provide these experiences for students in other schools, and this opportunity sort of fell into my lap. This is a huge step in my goal to make FIRST robotics programs accessible to all students in ACS,” she said.

The grant provided Athens City Schools with:

• 15 FIRST LEGO League Discover Class Packs, 30 LEGO STEAM Park Sets, FIRST Certified Professional Development Seats
• 4 FIRST LEGO League Explore Class Packs, 24 LEGO SPIKE Essential Sets, FIRST Certified Professional Development Seats
• 2 FIRST LEGO League Challenge Class Packs, 12 LEGO SPIKE Prime Sets, FIRST Certified Professional Development Seats
• The Class Packs include online curriculum and physical workbooks and building sets as well.

The News Courier will continue following the development of FIRST programs across Athens City and Limestone County Schools.