Atlanta, Georgia | May 12, 2024
By Joëlle Walls
The Georgia Ramblin' Robots Invitationals, a world-level invitational of the FIRST LEGO League Challenge, will take place June 4-7, 2026, in the Exhibition Hall on Georgia Tech’s Atlanta campus. The Center for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics, and Computing (CEISMC) in the College of Lifetime Learning is seeking volunteers from the Georgia Tech community to assist with the competition.
Volunteers are needed for roles such as judges, referees, field resetters, and general event support. No prior experience with FIRST LEGO League robotics is required, as training will be provided. Volunteers will receive T-shirts, breakfast, lunch, and snacks, along with the opportunity to interact with participating teams. On-campus housing will be available for volunteers traveling from outside the Atlanta area.
“Volunteering is a rewarding way to support students and celebrate STEM,” said CEISMC Educational Outreach Manager Bob Kraushaar, who also serves as a co-program delivery partner for FIRST LEGO League Challenge in Georgia. “Seeing the excitement on students’ faces is what makes volunteering so special. It’s fun, it’s meaningful, and it makes a real difference for these young innovators.”
Sixty top-tier teams from 16 countries and 28 U.S. states have been invited to the Georgia Ramblin' Robots Invitationals, one of only nine international FIRST LEGO League events offered at the conclusion of this current “UnEarthed" season. Participants, ranging in age from 9 to 16, have engaged in research, problem-solving, coding, and engineering as they built and programmed LEGO robots to complete missions in the archaelogy-inspired robot game. Teams also participated in innovation projects, identifying and developing solutions, including robot designs connected to real-world challenges.
For more than two decades, Georgia Tech has been an affiliate partner for FIRST LEGO League Challenge, with CEISMC facilitating the program statewide and hosting the state championship.
CEISMC Savannah Director Timothy Cone, who also serves as co-program delivery partner for FIRST LEGO League Challenge, said the decision to submit a bid to host the invitational was an intentional effort to give students a meaningful, on-campus experience. “We saw this as an opportunity to welcome students from around the world to Georgia Tech and create an experience that reflects the scale and significance of their work,” Cone said. “Hosting the invitational allows us to combine high-level competition with exposure to a university environment focused on access, innovation, and community engagement.”
Competition manager Jorge Hernandez Cervantes added that hosting an international event of this scale creates opportunities to connect Georgia Tech more directly with students who are already immersed in robotics and the engineering design process. In his role as co-program manager for GoSTEM, he has seen firsthand how early, positive experiences on a college campus can influence students' educational pathways.
“We want students to feel like they belong here,” Hernandez Cervantes said. “For many, this is their first interaction with a university, and we want it to be memorable and inspiring. By offering a multi-day experience that includes campus tours and time exploring Atlanta, we’re creating an event that celebrates STEM while supporting Georgia Tech’s commitment to early exposure for students and expanding pathways into STEM majors and careers.”
To volunteer for the Georgia Ramblin' Robots Invitationals, please register via the volunteer website: https://tinyurl.com/2026VolunteerFIRST.
Volunteering is flexible, with one-day or multiple-day opportunities available to fit individual schedules.
For additional information or questions, please email fll@ceismc.gatech.edu.
