12 April 18 • 2019
jn

SARA BERKOWITZ EAKER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
Robots Are Coming

Israeli teams will come to Detroit for an international competition.

T

he future is technology and that 
future will be well represented at 
the 2019 FIRST Championship 
April 24-27 at Cobo Center in Detroit, 
featuring a celebration of space, inno-
vation and STEM — science, technolo-
gy, engineering and math. 
This is the world’
s largest STEM 
jubilee, bringing together thousands of 
students from around the world who 
participate in K-12 robotics programs 
along with educators, industry profes-
sionals, sponsors and organizations. 
Also, following the theme of building 
your own robot, 1,300 robots built by 
these young visionaries will be making 
the journey to Detroit. 
Detroit was chosen because it is a 
hub of technology, manufacturing, 
invention and creativity. Another com-
petition will be held in Houston earlier 
this month.
When it comes to innovation, 
Israel is often at the forefront. FIRST 
Robotics Israel was brought to Israel 
16 years ago by Israel Air Force Lt. 
Gen. (Ret.) Avihu Ben-Nun and Peretz 
Lavie, president of the Technion, Israel 
Institute of Technology. 
“From 12 teams in year one, we’
ve 
grown to more than 1,200 teams in 
2019, from all over Israel, across gen-
ders and religion,” said Alon Wolf, a 
professor at the Technion who heads 
the program. “We have four programs 
in Israel starting in kindergarten 
through 12th grade for a total of 
15,000+ students with 2,000 volunteers 
around the country.”
FIRST is still a project of the 
Technion and run by the Technion as 
its leading outreach activity. This year, 
Israel will send 600+ high school stu-
dents, including teams from Detroit’
s 
Partnership2Gether region in the 
Central Galilee, to participate in the 
championship in Detroit. Ben-Nun 
and Wolf will accompany the Israeli 
teams, along with mentors, parents 
and volunteers.
“We have strong leadership in robot-
ics and technology at the Technion,
” 
Wolf said. “My research is in the field 
of robotics and, for many years, I was 
involved with STEM activities. I was 

asked 10 years ago to take the lead at the 
Technion with the program.
”
Though competition is important, 
Wolf believes the most important factor 
is cooperation. 
“FIRST was founded on the concept 
and philosophy that teams can and 
should help and cooperate with each 
other even as they compete,
” Wolf said. 
“Cooperation involves learning from 
teammates. It is teaching teammates. 
Cooperation means competing always 
but assisting and enabling others when 

you can.
”
Teams that follow this philosophy, 
promote STEM and follow the compe-
tition principles can earn a spot on the 
dean’
s list, which awards them a free 
ticket to the world championship, Wolf 
explained. 
A special guest at the competition will 
be Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway 
and international founder of FIRST 
Robotics.
Dr. Richard and Sally Krugel, longtime 
Jewish Federation and Jewish communi-

ty lay leaders, will be volunteering at the 
event. They know Ben-Nun well. 
“In 1974-75, we were stationed at 
Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, 
Ala. This is where the Air War College is 
located, including the upper echelon of 
generals. We were there the first time an 
Israeli was invited over. That Israeli was a 
pilot at the time, Avihu Ben-Nun,
” Sally 
Krugel said. 
“We lived on base and so did he and 
his wife, and we became fast friends. 
Years later, Avihu Ben-Nun became 
commander of the Israeli Air Force. 
When he retired, he was in a business 
conglomerate and one of his portfolios 
was General Motors, so he would come 
to Detroit with the Israeli GM affiliate.
”
Richard Krugel explained Ben-Nun 
took this leadership role because it 
helps build Israeli technology. GM has 
a research and development facility in 
Herzliya, Israel, where they are working 
on autonomous vehicles and research 
that exceeds the research capabilities of 
GM here in the U.S., Krugel said. 
“Our goal is to get people out to the 
event and give the Israeli kids in Cobo 
Center our support.
” ■ 

For details, visit firstchampionship.org.

jews d
in 
the

TOP: April 4 at the 

FIRST Robotics Israel 

finals

BELOW: Alon Wolf at 

the finals in Israel.

ALON WOLF

