A robot is the excuse. The point is who else ends up building one.
Absolute Zero exists to show students that problem-solving, innovation and technology are not only useful skills but genuinely worth doing. We are a competitive team. We are also, and more importantly, a way into FIRST for people who did not know it was there.
Everything below is what that commits us to. It is written down because a mission that is not written down is a mood.
Our mission
To inspire students to explore STEM by showing that problem-solving, innovation and technology are not only valuable skills, but exciting and rewarding pursuits.
And to build a team culture on hard work, creativity and collaboration, where every member is encouraged to share ideas, to grow, and to support one another with respect and integrity.
Those two halves are not separate. A team that treats its own newest member badly will not teach a stranger’s child well, and a team that never leaves its workshop has nothing to teach anyone.
Our vision
A Northern Virginia where every student who wants to build something has a team to build it with, and knows how to find one.
That vision is deliberately aligned with the organisation we compete under. FIRST states it this way:
To transform our culture by creating a world where science and technology are celebrated and where young people dream of becoming science and