The Future Isn’t a Place We Go, It’s a Place We Create

For our team, being a force for change is at the heart of everything we do. We implement our own unique set of core values which are: Educate, Empower, and Excel. We use these values to help drive real, positive change. We educate each other and our community. We empower those who don’t have access to the same STEM opportunities we have. We use our FIRST^® experience to impact lives locally and around the world by being role models who promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEM fields.

To create greater access to STEM education in our community and inspire younger students to join FIRST, we created the Davis Youth Robotics (DYR) program. Through DYR, we introduce children in grades 4-8 to STEM, innovation, and problem solving through FIRST programs and values. Each week, our team members mentor elementary and junior high school students in after-school robotics programs. We have seen the impact of the DYR program firsthand; 41% of our current team members began their robotics journey by participating in DYR. 

To reach even more students in our community, we have created four high school robotics classes in collaboration with the Davis Joint Unified School District to enable high school students to explore their interests in and pursue a future in STEM. These classes are now a part of the California Career Technical Education pathway, and in 2019, the Advanced Honors Robotics Engineering class was recognized as a University of California-approved Honors course.

Through FIRST and all the projects it allows us to build, we have seen first-hand how a team can have a large impact. Here at the Citrus Circuits, we have a saying, “The future isn’t a place we can go, it’s a place we create.”