MSG Varsity Presents "Robotics" TV Special

PRLog (Press Release) - May 4, 2012 - BETHPAGE, N.Y., May 4, 2012 – On May 12, MSG Varsity will air an all-new television special titled Robotics, which will follow three local high school teams as they prepare to compete in the SBPLI Long Island Regional FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC).  The School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI) sponsors this event as part of FIRST’s (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) nationwide high school robotics competition. Teams featured in the one-hour special are Team 329 from Patchogue-Medford High School, Team 353 from Plainview-Old Bethpage High School and Rookie Team 4006 from Central Islip High School. The show will air at 5:00 p.m. on May 12th, with encore presentations at 6:00 p.m. and again during primetime at 9:00 p.m. on MSG Varsity Optimum Channel 14.

In Robotics, cameras follow the three Long Island teams throughout the process of building a competition-ready robot for the Long Island Regional Competition which took place at Hofstra University. This year’s competition, entitled “Rebound RumbleSM”, tasked teams to build robots that can score as many basketballs into hoops as possible during a two minute and fifteen second match. The show will conclude with the competition, highlighting how well these three Long Island teams fare against the other 47 high school teams from the region.

“It’s really impressive to witness everything these high school students put into robotics, not to mention what they accomplish,” said Michael Lardner, Senior Vice President and Executive Producer, MSG Varsity. “It’s something we at MSG Varsity are proud to be able to share with our viewers.”

“We are proud to have MSG Varsity take the time to follow the teams and learn about SBPLI’s Long Island Regional FIRST Robotics Competition,” said Hans Zobel, Board Chairman, SBPLI. “MSG Varsity’s participation in our annual event provides greater exposure to SBPLI and also provides a benefit to the younger students who are part of the robotics program. Viewers will have the opportunity to learn about robotics and realize that these students are the workforce of the future.”

In addition to the May 12 airings of Robotics, it will also be available on MSG Varsity On-Demand, Optimum Channel 614.

More information about robotics, including videos and photos from this competition as well as additional competitions from New Jersey are available online at www.msgvarsity.com/robotics.

About MSG Varsity
MSG Varsity is a multi-platform suite of services comprised of: a 24/7 Emmy Award winning HD television network, a comprehensive online destination, and a groundbreaking interactive service, all dedicated to high school sports, academics and activities happening throughout the tri-state area.  Content for these services includes MSG Varsity’s professionally produced programming as well as content created by the high schools themselves.  Working in partnership with MSG Varsity, students and faculty are given extraordinary access to curriculum and training in multimedia creation and distribution, empowering them to become active participants in telling their school’s stories.  MSG Varsity is a Cablevision exclusive service not available to satellite or phone company TV subscribers and reaches three million households throughout the New York market.  For more information, please visit www.msgvarsity.com.

About the School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc.
The Long Island FIRST Regional Competition is run by the School-Business Partnerships of Long Island, Inc. (SBPLI). SBPLI was founded in 1984 by Fred Breithut with the goal of developing partnerships between local high schools and businesses that would provide students with practical experience and curriculum development, while helping the business community develop its future workforce. Over 100 partnerships have been formed. In 1999, Long Island FIRST was formed for the purpose of developing a Long Island Regional FIRST Competition. In 2000, 14 high school teams participated.  The Long Island Regional has since grown with 50 teams participating in 2012. On January 8, 2012, registered teams were provided with supplies and the competition's game rules. The 2012 Competition was held at Hofstra University on March 30-31, 2012.