I’m the mother of a child that teachers had written off and whose school could do little to help. In ninth grade, he switched to a STEM school where a counselor encouraged him to join FIRST Tech Challenge Team 288. Kids from all walks of life, all colors and cliques came together under this FIRST banner. My son, dismissed as a troublemaker, was accepted by them, no questions asked. He became a valued member of this team. FIRST changed my son’s life. From a little boy dismissed by many, to a proud member of a movement, he is succeeding today as a member of FIRST.