The Label Printers, Aurora, Illinois is pleased to once again sponsor a FIRST robotics team which has been organized by Geneva High School, Geneva, Illinois.

 “Last year was the first time that we had been a sponsor, and the first time that Geneva had organized a team,” said Bill Kane, C.E.O. of The Label Printers.  “We thought that the program was excellent and were very proud of the Robovikes when they made it to the Midwest Regional’s final round in their equivalent of the Elite Eight.  This year we’re looking forward to expanding our participation, and helping Geneva build their robotics program.”

 Mary Keyzer, Social Studies teacher at Geneva High School who will be the team’s faculty organizer and champion, says that she’s very excited to get the Robovikes going again.  “All of the kids who participated last year, except our graduated seniors, are planning on returning again this year.  And because we’re starting sooner, and know more about how the program works, we’re very excited about the opportunity to do more, get more kids involved, get the community involved, and have as much fun as we did last year.  It was a blast.”

 Geneva’s team will spend the next few months organizing, putting together their Business Plan, and going out to the community to gather support.  They will receive their robot “kit” at the beginning of January, build it over the course of the next 6 weeks, and then ship it to the February competition at the UIC Pavilion.  All interested parties are invited to that competition.

 Anyone interested in helping the team (space to build the robot; machine shop; engineering, robotics, video, website, or machine building mentoring; or donations of cash, goods, or services; or general volunteers) can contact The Label Printers (Elizabeth@thelabelprinters.com) or Mary Keyzer (MKeyzer@geneva304.org).

 About THE LABEL PRINTERS:

The Label Printers, Aurora, IL, started in business in 1967, manufacturing simple label constructions in a 1,000 square foot space, with 1 employee, serving the local Chicago market.

 Today, the company has evolved into one of the 100 largest converters in the United States.  The Label Printers owns and operates two facilities in Aurora, Illinois, manufacturing and distributing labels and packaging products to thousands of customers in 25 countries around the world. The company’s packaging products are certified to ISO 9001 standards, and their quality is backed up by their 99.6% Quality Acceptance Rating.

 About Geneva High School (Community Unit School District 304)

Geneva Community High School is over 130 years old and has over 1,800 students, 150 faculty members, and offers more than 150 courses in eleven academic areas.  Students may also enroll in one of thirty-seven academic courses in the Fox Valley Career Center curriculum.  Advanced placement and honors courses are offered in all academic areas supported by the expansion of our Acceleration and Enrichment program. 

While maintaining an outstanding tradition of excellence in education, athletic and extracurricular programs, our school provides a wide variety of community service learning experiences throughout Geneva and the Fox Valley.  Our experienced administrative team and dedicated staff, along with the support of the community of Geneva, offer one of the finest educational opportunities available throughout the state of Illinois.

About FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology):