Listen
We begin by understanding the students, school, age group, and kind of robotics experience the community wants to create.
Our storyOpportunity
Opportunity
starts with
an invitation.
FIRST For Youth began with a simple belief: students should be able to explore robotics, engineering, and teamwork at their own schools.
01
Where we began
Built by students, for studentsA local idea with
A local idea with
a lasting purpose.
FIRST For Youth is a strategic initiative of Fair Lakes Youth Association, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. It was founded by Ronit Manchanda and is currently run by Ishaan Khatri.
The initiative was created to help more young people access the kinds of hands-on STEM experiences that develop confidence, curiosity, and real-world skills. Rather than asking students to find opportunities somewhere else, FIRST For Youth works to bring robotics programs into the schools and communities where students already learn.
Through FIRST robotics programs, student volunteers, school staff, mentors, and community partners work together to create environments where young people can design, code, build, compete, communicate, and solve problems as a team.
Our purposeMake hands-on STEM
Make hands-on STEM
feel possible—and
make it available.
FIRST For Youth helps create, mentor, and manage FIRST robotics teams throughout Fairfax County. The goal is not simply to teach students how to build a robot. It is to give them a place to practice leadership, collaboration, creativity, resilience, and thoughtful problem-solving.
Explore our team history ↗How the work happensFrom first interest
From first interest
to a functioning team.
Launch
We help schools and students take the first practical steps toward forming a program or FIRST robotics team.
Mentor
Student volunteers and mentors share experience, guide hands-on sessions, and help participants build confidence over time.
Grow
Teams apply what they learn through projects, presentations, collaboration, outreach, and competition experiences.
03
A pathway through robotics
Programs that grow
with the student.
FIRST For Youth works across the FIRST program pathway, giving students age-appropriate opportunities to move from early exploration to increasingly ambitious engineering challenges.
Powered by communityNo team is built
No team is built
by one person.
FIRST For Youth’s work depends on students willing to lead, volunteers willing to serve, educators willing to open doors, mentors willing to share their knowledge, families willing to encourage, and partners willing to invest in access.
There is room on this team
Start a team ↗