# _FIRST_ Leadership Award

This document contains an overview of the _FIRST_ Leadership Award process for league leaders.

=== Information for the 2025–2026 season

Timeline:

{.compact}
| **Date** | **Note** |
| -------- | -------- |
| **December 15, 2025** | Deadline for nominations from teams. |
| **December 16, 2025** | Information about nominations becomes available to the PDP. |
| **January 4–17, 2026** | Designated timeframe for _FIRST_ Leadership Award Interviews across the state. |
| **January 18, 2026** | Interview notes are due. |
| **League Tournament** | Recognize the nominated students as _FIRST_ Leadership Award Semi-Finalists |

Volunteer express signup:

[!ref target="blank" text="Interviewers"](https://my.firstinspires.org/ExpressVolunteer/landing-page/575ec458-d0d0-11f0-9c76-00505699b848/ff308ed0-dcf9-11ec-bcfa-005056a1b3b9)

==- General information about the award

Summary from _FIRST_:

> The _FIRST_ Leadership Award recognizes the dedication and individual contributions of outstanding secondary school students participating on *FIRST*® Tech Challenge or *FIRST*® Robotics Competition teams.

In short:

- Coaches nominate up to two students each year
- Students must be in 10th or 11th grade
- Students participate in interviews
- Reviewers select Finalists from around the state
- Winners are selected from around the world

[!ref target="blank" text="Learn More"](https://www.firstinspires.org/resources/library/ftc/leadership-award)

==- Terms used in this document

_FIRST_ Leadership Award **Semi-Finalist**
: Any student nominated by their coach is considered a _FIRST_ Leadership Award Semi-Finalist

_FIRST_ Leadership Award **Finalist**
: Students selected by Florida's _FIRST Leadership Award Reviewers_ are considered _FIRST Leadership Award Finalists_

_FIRST_ Leadership Award **Winners**
: The top 10 students selected from around the world are considered _FIRST_ Leadership Award Winners

_FIRST_ Leadership Award **Interviewers**
: Volunteers from each league that interview nominees / semi-finalists and provide written notes to enhance the nominations

_FIRST_ Leadership Award **Reviewers**
: Volunteers that review nominations and select _FIRST_ Leadership Award Finalists

JA
: Judge Advisor

PDP
: Program Delivery Partner

===

## _The Short Version_

- Coaches nominate students
- Leagues recruit _FIRST Leadership Award Interviewers_
- Interviewers interview nominees and submit notes
- Leagues recognize nominees at the League Tournament

## Nominations

Coaches can nominate up to two students, in 10th or 11th grade, for the _FIRST_ Leadership Award each year.
Nominations have a global deadline set by _FIRST_.
**Please encourage coaches to nominate their students.**
Share the [Nomination Guide](https://www.firstinspires.org/hubfs/web/program/ftc/deans-list-nomination-guide.pdf?hsLang=en) for more information.

We aren't able to see any information about the nominations until after the deadline (usually at noon on the day after the deadline).
This includes the count of nominations, or how they are divided among the leagues.

!!! Nomenclature
Every nominated student is referred to as a **_FIRST_ Leadership Award Semi-Finalist**.
!!!

## Recruiting Interviewers

Individual leagues recruit **_FIRST_ Leadership Award Interviewers**.
These volunteers will, in pairs, conduct interviews with the nominated students and provide written notes about the student in the Judging Portal.
They **do** need to be unbiased individuals that are willing to advocate for each of the students, but they **do not** need to make any decisions about who "wins".

Someone interested in volunteering as a _FIRST_ Leadership Award Interviewer should do the following:

- Review the [_FIRST_ Leadership Award Interviewer Manual](https://ftc-resources.firstinspires.org/ftc/volunteer/deans-list-interviewer)
- Sign up as a _FIRST Leadership Award Interviewer_ at the _Florida FIRST Leadership Award Interviews_ event in the _FIRST_ Dashboard
  - An express signup link is available in the overview panel above
- They should ignore the dates listed for the event (more on this later)
- Make it known (by emailing me, or having you email me) which league they will interview

Each league needs at least two interviewers.
Leagues can share interviewers if someone has sufficient time.
Leagues can also recruit additional interviewers to help share the workload.

## Conducting Interviews

After the nomination deadline, the PDP will share information about the nominees.
Any time after that, interviewers can schedule interviews.
Here are the constraints:

- Interviews must be conducted during the designated timeframe listed in the overview above.
- Interview notes are due by the end of the day on the date listed.
  It’s a good practice to submit them as soon as possible after each individual interview, for the sake of memory.
- Interviews, which are usually performed via video conference, require two interviewers to be present at all times.
  Nominees may also have a silent observer present.
- If a league has more than two interviewers, they may self-organize coverage of interviews however they see fit.

The timeframe is a trade-off between giving _FIRST_ Leadership Award Interviewers as much time as possible, and giving the _FIRST_ Leadership Award Reviewers sufficient time to review the interview notes and select finalists before their deadline.

## Recognizing Semi-Finalists

Every nominated student is considered a Semi-Finalist for the _FIRST_ Leadership Award.
Leagues should recognize the Semi-Finalists at their League Tournament event.
Some portion of a script (opening or awards) will likely include this.

The PDP may receive physical pins for recognition; if this happens, league leaders will be contacted regarding shipping.