GATOR
Girls Advancing Technology, Opportunity, & Robotics
Hosted By KSS Robotics and Laurel School
Sunday, August 23, 2026
Laurel School, 1 Lyman Cir, Shaker Heights, OH 44122
Last Update: 8/2/2026
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What is GATOR?
GATOR (Girls Advancing Technology, Opportunity, & Robotics) is a FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) offseason competition with a mission to build a supportive and empowering environment where girls can develop their skills, build their confidence, discover their capabilities, and serve as role models for the next generation of female FIRST participants and Women in STEM.
Criteria
For 2026, FIRST Tech Challenge "Decode" rules apply with a spin - the entire drive team must be entirely female identifying. It is HIGHLY encouraged that the pit crew is also made up of females, but it is not required. The whole team is encouraged to attend the event and support the drive team in the stands.
What if we don't have enough girls to fill drive team roles?
OPTION 1: This is your team's chance to recruit more girls onto their team. See if there is are FLL or FRC students interested in joining your team for the day or if any of your teammates have a sibling that would be willing to step in.
OPTION 2: Teams can partner with another team and compete with 1 robot.
OPTION 3: (NEW FOR 2026) Guest Member Interest - This is an option for girls who are not part of a team or teams that do not have enough girls to fill a drive team. The goal is to help pair girls with a team that has limited female drive team members and/or has an extra robot
Pairings are dependent on availability. Teams providing robots or inviting additioinal will be expected to mentor and traing guests.
Number of Teams
At this time, we are maxing out the number of teams to 16. If there is demand for more teams, we will assess.
Registration Fee
2026 Team Registration fee - $50/team
Invoices will be sent a couple weeks prior to competition.
*If the registration fee is a barrier for your team to participate, please email info@kssrobotics.org
Team Registration
Guest Member Interest
To make this event accessible to more girls, we are piloting a guest member option for participants who may not have a full team or robot.
Guests will be matched with a team or robot based on availability and is not guarenteed at the time of submission.
2026 GATOR Guest Member Interest
Volunteer Registration
2026 GATOR Volunteer Registration
There are no restrictions to volunteers. All volunteers must be aged 13+ (unless given approval by tournament director)
FIRST Tech Challenge Volunteer Role Descriptions
Note: Some roles may not be offered or modified from traditional in-season events
Testimonials from 2025 Event
Testimonials from 2025 Event
"One of the girls in our program didn't think robotics was for her until she competed at GATOR. Now she gets so excited for robotics."
"GATOR was our daughter's first tournament. She had an incredible experience and her confidence grew when her team made it to the finals."
"GATOR was the first time our team had girls in over 3 years, and then they joined the team for the official season."
"GATOR made us rethink about how we can involve and include girls on our team."
Judging & Awards
Judging & Awards
There will be a number of judged team and individual awards that were unique to the event. Below are the awards for 2026!
Interested in sponsoring an award for 2026? Email info@kssrobotics.org
2026 Individual Awards
Gator Trailblazer - award recognizes a female student team member, who demonstrates STEM leadership and serves as a role model within her team and community.
Alligator Ally (Mentor Award) - A mentor or coach who has had a meaningful impact towards women in STEM and fosters an environment where girls on their teams can thrive.
Nominees can be one or both of the following -
a. A FEMALE mentor/coach who has led and inspired their team, serving as a shining role model of a woman in STEM
b. ANY mentor/coach, regardless of gender, who has demonstrated a strong commitment to supporting and advancing opportunities for girls on their team
Alligator Advocate (Parent/Family Award) - A parent or family whose support and contributions have been vital to their team’s success.
Tailwind Award - A volunteer or group of volunteers whose dedication and efforts were crucial in making GATOR a success . Winner will be chosen be chosen by GATOR tournament committee
2026 Robot Performance Award
Chomp Champion - Winning Alliance
Chomp Champion Finalist - Finalist Alliance
2026 Team Judged Awards
Gator Innovator (Engineering Process Award - Awarded to a team that can articulate their engineering process, including function, innovation, control, and/or aesthetics.
Swamp Synergy (Game Strategy Award) - Awarded to the team that can best articulate their game strategy based on their robot strengths and their team's unique capabilities.
Swamp Spark (Creativity Award) - Awarded to a team that incorporated a creative, unique robot feature or strategic approach that enhances their robot performance and game strategy
Reptile Resilience (Rising All-Star Award) - Awarded to a team that has faced challenges but persisted, adapted, and pushed forward to rise above obstacles.
Alligator Ambition (Outreach Award) - Recognizes a team whose collective effort goes beyond they playing field -they actively promote and connect STEM within their team, school and/or community
Sister Snappers (Gracious Professionalism Award) - Awarded to the a team that demonstrates a commitment to growing opportunities for girls in robotics and STEM, through recruitment, mentorship, outreach, and/or the development of a supportive and inclusive team culture
Bellow Brigade (Team Spirit Award) - Team that displays the most united spirit and enthusiasm, on and off the playing field
Judge's Choice (Optional Award per Judge's Discretion) - Recognizes a team with unique creativity or impact, and stand out beyond the standard award categories.
2026 Schedule (as of 8/2/26)
2026 Schedule (as of 8/2/26)
Below is the estimated schedule for 2026 GATOR. Schedule can be subject to change at anytime.
Saturday, August 22nd
2 p.m. - 4 p.m. : Event Setup
Sunday, August 23rd
7:30 - Doors open for teams
8:15 - 9:45 - Speed Judging, Volunteer Training (if necessary)
10 a.m. - 10:45 a.m. : Driver's meeting and Opening Ceremonies
11 a.m. - 1 p.m. : Practice and qualification matches
1 p.m. - 2 p.m. . : Lunch and Judge callbacks (at the discretion of judges)
2 p.m. - 3 p.m. : Qualification Matches and Judge callbacks (at the discretion of judges)
3:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. : Alliance Selection
4: 00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. : Playoffs and Awards Ceremony
Opportunity & Interactive Fair
Opportunity & Interactive Fair
We are looking for STEM organizations to participate in the 2026 Opportunity & Interactive Fair! Please email info@kssrobotics.org if interested.
Thank you to the following organizations for participating in our 2025 GATOR Opportunity & Interactive Fair
FLL- Positive Protons
FLL - Science Sisters
International Women's Air and Space Museum
Kent State University
University of Akron
2026 Registered Teams (15/16 Spots Filled)
2026 Registered Teams (15/16 Spots Filled)
If you registered your team on or before the last update , and are not listed below, please email info@kssrobotics.org
8581 - Ædificatores (Kent, OH)
17978 - RoboKai (Franklin, OH)
20744- 24 Karat (Aurora, OH)
21681 - Moonshots (Gates Mills, OH)
23470 - Junk Drawer FTC (Lodi, OH)
23493 - Techno Domination (Solon, OH)
23764 - Titans of Aurora (Aurora, OH)
24481 - Cobalt Chaos (Kent, OH)
24540 - Zip Tried (Shaker Heights, OH)
25650 - One Small Step for Axolotl (Lititz, PA)
26708 - The Argonauts (Solon, OH)
26883 - WestG Wolver Machines (Chesterland, OH)
30334 - Blood, Sweat, and Gears (Cleveland, OH)
30687 - Titanium Tacos (Aurora, OH)
Offseason Team* - Double Digits (Solon, OH)
FAQ (FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS)
FAQ (FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS)
Why all girls?
Take a moment and think about how many girls are on your team. With several teams being primarily male-dominate, we want to strive to fill the gender gap within FIRST and STEM. GATOR's mission is to create an empowering environment where girls can grow their confidence and have opportunities to reach their full potential, while growing allyship for women in STEM.
What if I've never been on the drive team?
Guess What? Everyone has never been a drive team at some point. There is a first time for everything! This is a wonderful opportunity to challenge yourself, try something new, get your hands dirty, all in a supportive environment. We can guarantee there will be someone at the competition who has also never competed on the drive team. At the end, we hope you have the courage and confidence to be on your team's drive team for the upcoming season.
At 2025 event, there were a handful of girls who have never been on a drive team, or have never competed in FTC prior to the event!
Do we have to be an active FTC team or member to participate?
Not at all! Since this is an off season, this is a great time to get your feet wet in FTC. We encourage FLL and FRC students to participate as an opportunity to try something new and have some fun. If you want to participate for the experience, you can form a team and build an FTC robot during the offseason, or join a team for the day.
NEW FOR 2026 - We are offering individual registration for those who are looking for a team to participate.
Can non-female mentor(s), teammates, and volunteers still attend?
Absolutely! The only requirement is that the drive team must be female identifying. One of our goals of this event is to bring female allyship to light. Everyone is more than welcomed and encouraged to attend! They can help in the pits, cheer in the stands, and volunteer!
Is GATOR offered as a FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC)?
Due to limited bandwidth, funding, location, and other challenges, we are unable to offer GATOR as FRC or FLL event at this time. However, the goal is to expand GATOR to FRC and FLL in future seasons.
We are encouraging FRC and FLL teams to build an FTC robot in the off season or take advantage of one of the partnership opportunities. This is a great training ground for technical and competition skills . We are also encouraging students 13+ to volunteer.
Questions
Questions
Any Questions: Send an email to info@kssrobotics.org
Keep an eye on this page for more updates and details as the come!
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