DENVER, Colo., July 24--Gates Corporation announced it has awarded scholarships to six high school seniors who competed in the 2012 FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC), using a Gates belt drive on their competition robots. As a Crown Supplier of the FIRST Robotics Competition, Gates provides components for the not-for-profit organization’s national science and technology competitions, including the FRC’s World Championship, which was held on April 28, 2012 at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, MO. The organization had over 2,000 teams participate in 2012 competitions. Gates has awarded collegiate scholarships to deserving high school seniors since 2010.

Winners of the Gates scholarships, from a field of more than 100 applicants, are: Nathaniel Abraham of Columbia, CS; Ravi Saripella of Richmond, VA; Anthony Bacik of Fairview, PA; Bryan Culver of Pontiac, MI; Victoria Cespedes of Travelers Rest, SC; and Jacob Mauro of Las Vegas, NV. All are high school seniors and members of a 2012 FRC team. The recipients also successfully answered a challenge question posed by the Gates North America Commercial Selection Committee. Challenge questions required students to apply the kind of “out of the box” innovation and creativity demanded of real-world engineers. Their successful efforts earned each student a non-renewable $2,000 scholarship.

As an additional reward, the students and their parents were invited to visit the Gates Customer Solutions Center in Englewood, CO, one of Gates global technical centers dedicated to fluid power research and development. During their visit, the students and their families were hosted by Gates executive and technical leaders, who provided tours of the facility. Meetings with technical and engineering staff members provided students the opportunity to get a first-hand look at high-tech engineering and Gates.com test labs.

Tribby Warfield, President, Gates North America Commercial, said, “Gates is proud to continue our support of this remarkable educational program. We believe in the impact of this Competition to stimulate the imaginations of these young, eager students, and, hopefully, direct their innovative talents and enthusiasm to careers as future engineers.”

For more information, contact Mari Jane Panek, 303.744.4533 or mjpanek@gates.com.

About FIRST
Accomplished inventor Dean Kamen founded FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) in 1989 to inspire an appreciation of science and technology in young people. Based in Manchester, N.H., FIRST designs accessible, innovative programs to build self-confidence, knowledge, and life skills while motivating young people to pursue opportunities in science, technology, and engineering. With support from three out of every five Fortune 500 companies and nearly $12 million in college scholarships, the not-for-profit organization hosts the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) and FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) for high-school students, FIRST LEGO League (FLL) for 9 to 14-year-olds, (9 to 16-year-olds outside the U.S. and Canada) and Junior FIRST LEGO League (Jr. FLL) for 6 to 9-year- olds. Gracious ProfessionalismTM is a way of doing things that encourages high-quality work, emphasizes the value of others, and respects individuals and the community. To learn more about FIRST, go to http://www.usfirst.org.

About Gates Corporation 
Gates Corporation is a global, diversified industrial company that provides advanced power transmission and fluid transfer solutions by engineering products and services that reduce the total cost of ownership for a wide variety of applications. Our products and services serve customers in five key end market segments: Energy/Exploration/Extraction, Infrastructure & Agriculture, Transportation, Automotive, and Process & Specialty. As an engineering leader with a strong foundation in research and development, Gates is committed to advancing the science of motion performance by developing safe, forward-thinking products, services, systems, and solutions, as well as fostering long-term customer and employee relationships. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Gates employs over 14,000 people across 106 locations in 30 countries.

-----

Source: Gates Corporation