Governor's trip to to Dubai puts N.H. robotics, Stem programs on world stage
Staff reports 11:46 a.m.
CONCORD - Governor Chris Sununu and New Hampshire inventor Dean Kamen will travel today to the United Arab Emirates for a global announcement regarding FIRSTGlobal, Kamen's nonprofit advocating for STEM and robotics education around the world. FIRST was founded in Manchester by Kamen in 1989, and has since grown into a global program with more than 600,000 students from 100-plus countries. Governor Sununu has become a national leader and advocate for expanding robotics programs at the state level. In 2017, he created the Robotics Education Fund, a $1M initiative for public schools to implement robotics programs. In 2018, he announced the Governor's Cup - a competitive annual robotics competition in partnership between The University System of New Hampshire, the Community College System, and FIRST Robotics that provides a tuition-free semester within the University or Community College System for seniors on winning teams. The summit brings the public and private sectors together to collaborate with world-renowned experts in order to help create a positive impact for citizens worldwide (www.worldgovernmentsummit.org). "I look forward to traveling to Dubai with Governor Sununu for the FIRST Global announcement," Kamen said. "This trip presents an exciting opportunity for us to tout New Hampshire's success at expanding student involvement in FIRST on a global scale in front of world leaders." No taxpayer funds will be used for this trip, and the governor will always be available to act in his official elected capacity, a statement from the governor's office stated. Gov. Sununu will return to New Hampshire on Monday.
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