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Alumni Profile: Amir Tillis

November 9, 2023
Amir Tillis is a VEX alumni who participated in V5RC events while in high school. He currently works at Deloitte as a technical consultant where his primary focus is space and defense clients. “Peopl...
VEX alum Amir Tillis profile picture

Congratulations to Project Lead the Way Teacher of the Year and RECF Volunteer Natasha Craft

January 24, 2024
While dedicated mentors abound at the Robotics Education and Competition Foundation, it is rare that a volunteer is named Teacher of the Year. In December, Natasha Craft, a robotics coach and educato...

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month 2023

October 11, 2023
Like many REC Foundation (RECF) mentors, Yazmin Rivera got into robotics with little prior experience after her school’s STEM teacher departed and she was asked to fill in for the position. Despite t...
Yaszmin Rivera profile picture

Be Authentically You – Mrs. Belt-Robinson

February 28, 2019
We are very excited to kick off a new blog series that will feature a Q&A with the strong women mentors, coaches, teachers, and more within VEX Robotics and CS-STEM that inspire our young girls t...

Native American Profiles in STEM

November 3, 2022
Working with our partners at the American Indian Science and Engineering Society, the REC Foundation celebrates Native American Heritage Month by highlighting indigenous people in various domain...
Native American Profiles in STEM graphic featuring four profile pictures

Black History Month 2023 Feature: Janeen Uzzell

February 26, 2023
Janeen Uzzell is the Chief Executive Officer at the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), the largest Black STEM community impacting society and industry. In her former role as the Chief Operat...
Black History Month graphic

Black History Month 2023 Feature: Terrence Southern

February 27, 2023
Terrence Southern is an award winning Robotics & Automation expert, speaker, influencer of innovation, entrepreneur and philanthropist who is a nationally recognized thought leader, strategist an...
Terrence Southern profile picture

3rd Annual Southwest Native American Showcase sponsored by Amazon and Google

October 13, 2022
All Native American and Indigenous Teams are invited to participate in the 3rd Annual Native American Showcase Events – November 18-19, 2022 in Whiteriver, Arizona. Teams will have an oppo...
Logo of Southwest Native Showcase

2023 Online Challenges Winners Announced

February 22, 2023
Great job to all students from all over the globe who participated in this year’s Online Challenges! We are so proud of all the entries we saw and we are excited to share this year’s winn...
Online Challenges Winners Announced graphic

The Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation and the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) Partner to Offer Greater Academic and Professional Support for Young Women

October 16, 2023
Greenville, TX – October 11, 2023 – To celebrate the International Day of the Girl, The Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation and the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) today announced ...
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Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month 2022

October 5, 2022
As part of Hispanic Heritage month (September 15-October 15) the REC Foundation is highlighting Hispanic members of the VEX robotics community. We recently sat down with Patricia Cortez, an educator ...
Hispanic Heritage Month graphic

VEX Robotics World Championship Announces Elementary, Middle School, and High School Champions

Greenville, TX – May 17, 2022: The Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation’s VEX Robotics World Championship has crowned world champions among its divisions and age groups. More than 20...
VEX Robotics World Championship logo

Young Innovators Compete at the Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation’s VEX Robotics World Championship

GREENVILLE, Texas, May 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Starting today, the Robotics Education & Competition (REC) Foundation’s 15th annual VEX Robotics World Cham...
VEX Robotics World Championship logo

Black History Month 2022 Feature: Edward Tunstel, Ph.D.

February 8, 2022
Organization: Motiv Space Systems, Inc. State: Connecticut How did you become interested in robotics? Drawing and sketching art, and taking things apart or putting things together were among...

Women’s History Month 2022: Women Leaders in our Community

March 2, 2022
March is Women’s History Month! This month, we’re celebrating the trailblazers of the past and the current women in STEM who are making history by inspiring our robotics community and paving the way ...
Girl Powered presented by Google logo

2022 Online Challenges Winners Announced

February 23, 2022
Great job to all students from all over the globe who participated in this year’s 2022 Online Challenges! We are so proud of all the entries we saw and we are excited to share this year’s...
Online Challenges Winners Announced graphic

Black History Month 2022 Feature: Rodney Williams

February 8, 2022
Organization: South Panola High School Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps, Mississippi Squadron 081 (MS-081) State: Mississippi How did you become interested in robotics? My int...
Rodney Williams profile picture

Black History Month 2022 Feature: Junior Bernadin

February 8, 2022
Organization: Ron Clark Academy State: Georgia How did you become interested in robotics? When I was a child, I was always fascinated with technology and its daily use in our lives. I would ...
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Black History Month 2022 Feature: Eric J. Davis

February 3, 2022
Organization: STEM Center of Excellence, Inc. State: Maryland How did you become interested in robotics? I began volunteering through my company, UPS, in 2013. I noticed the low participatio...

Black History Month 2022 Feature: Oscar DeVon McCullough

February 1, 2022
Organization: Potomac School Robotics, Enginotic 6 Robotics State: Virginia How did you become interested in robotics? Growing up, I was always interested in robotics, math, science and acti...
Oscar DeVon McCullough profile picture

Black History Month 2022 Feature: Arkadia K. Armour

February 1, 2022
Organization: Lakeside School District (Lakeside Elementary) Chicot County State: Arkansas How did you become interested in robotics? Becoming a robotics coach for an elementary school was p...
Arkadia K. Armour profile picture

VEX Journey Comes Full Circle

August 12, 2022
During high school, I competed on a VEX Robotics team. During this time, I had many opportunities because I was part of this community. For example, my high school robotics coach also worked for NASA...
Katie Frank profile picture

Black History Month 2022 Feature: Marcia Evans and Sandra Whittle-Jeffcoat

February 1, 2022
Organization: The National Coalition of 100 Black Women Las Vegas Team/Program: VEX IQ Challenge State: Nevada How did you become interested in robotics? Marcia: I was able to volunteer a...
Marcia Evans and Sandra Whittle Jeffcoat profile picture

Native American Profiles in STEM 2021

November 23, 2021
The REC Foundation is proud to celebrate Native American Heritage Month by highlighting indigenous people in STEM. With the help of our partners at the American Indian Science and Engineering Society...
Native American profiles in STEAMNative American Profiles

Back to School with the Student Advisory Board

September 19, 2024
At the 2019 VEX Robotics World Championship, the REC Foundation announced the Student Advisory Board (SAB) to provide students that participate in the VEX Robotics programs an opportunity to share th...
REC Foundation logo

2025-2026 Signature Event Updates

  1. An Event Partner wanting to apply to host a Signature Event must have hosted events for at least 2 seasons prior to applying. 
  2. Signature Events must use the officially branded award banners for the Excellence Award and Tournament/Teamwork Champions Award.
  3. When hanging field skirts the VEX Robotics logo/brand name can not be covered up on the competition fields.
  4. VEX V5 Robotics Competition Signature Events may have regional capacity and max per organization restrictions lifted 8 weeks before the event if the event is not full (similar to the process already in place for VEX IQ Robotics Competition Signature Events).
  5. Minimum pit size reduced to 8’x 8’ instead of 10’x10’.
  6. Beginning in the 2025-2026 season, the REC Foundation will collect $10 instead of $5 per team registration on all Signature Events. This is to help offset travel costs for REC Foundation staff to support these larger events.

2025-2026 Signature Event Application Reminders

  1. Existing Signature Events only need to complete the Final Application (due by March 31, 2025)
  2. New Signature Event concepts will need to complete the Initial Proposal by January 31, 2025 and if approved, complete the Final Application by March 31, 2025.
Crowd watches the Signature Event in Minnesota's Mall of America
VEX Robotics World Championship landscape logo