District 6 Kickoff

May 9, 2020

On December 9, 2019, NYC FIRST kicked off the first-ever implementation of its programs at a district-wide level.  All 49 K-12 schools in the New York City Department of Education’s District 6, which encompasses Washington Heights and Inwood in northern Manhattan, will take part in FIRST LEGO League or FIRST Tech Challenge from February through May 2020.  These programs will be incorporated into the regular school-day curriculum for all 5th and 6thgrade students, as well as 9th grade students in all District 6 high schools.  This roll-out will impact approximately 3,000 students, taking the number of students NYC FIRST impacts annually year to over 10,000.

Students will be equipped to meet the challenges of the future, by engaging in a robotics education program that flexes their engineering design skills, while inspiring them to find solutions to local community challenges through the application of math and science skills that build their critical thinking, confidence, collaboration, and creativity.

Principals and teachers gathered at P.S 189 in Washington Heights to embark on this STEM initiative, rally around a shared vision of what STEM education should be, learn from the NYC FIRST team, and gather insights from a local District 6 FIRST LEGO League team.

This district-wide rollout was made possible by the support and vision of City Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez and District 6 Superintendent Manny Ramirez.