Are you are an educational institution, organization, or nonprofit? Do you want robots? Learn here if the Every Kid Gets a Robot (EKGAR) program is right for your students.
Learn about EKGAR before applying:
the application process
Applications are open on a rolling basis for Every Kid Gets a Robot (EKGAR), an affordable educational robot created by The STEAM Connection. We are accepting applications for physical robot kits or for access to our virtual materials to 3D print and make your own robot kits.
This is a charitable program run by youth volunteers and we do not make a profit from our robots. The robots are hand-manufactured and made by our small team. We created this program with the goal of providing STEM solutions for classrooms who would not be able to afford it otherwise. If you serve youth, whether it be a corporate event, classroom, or youth programming - you qualify to receive robots. Unfortunately, at this time we cannot approve all applications due to a limited supply of robots and desire to provide robots to organizations that align with our mission. So, please be patient with us. We are doing the best we can as we receive tens of thousands of applications for robots weekly.
Please read this page before submitting an application. If you still have questions about the application process or our program offers, please inquire here:
Who are you
You want robots, we want to give people robots. Follow along with our guide here to see if you qualify.
1. applicant type
Are you applying on behalf of an organization or as an individual?
What is an organization? If you are a Tribal school, nonprofit organization, school, club, university, organization putting on youth programming, or company then you are an organization.
What is a non-organization? If you are an individual or family only wanting a few robots for your children, grandchildren, or immediate family then we consider you to not be an organization.
Yes, we are an organization
Perfect - we might click, keep progressing through this page to see if our robots are the right fit for you.
No, we are not an organization
We are sorry, but at this time we are not accepting individual applications at this time. We are only looking to provide robots to organizations that have the infrastructure to be able to support our program and have potential for scale. Hint: If you are an individual and want robots, apply with an organization. For example, if you are a homeschool family who wants robots, apply with your homeschool group or with a class. We want to share the robot love.
Demographic
The robots work with grades K-12 and also 18+ groups. However, they are best utilized with groups in middle school grades and beyond.
What You'll Get
We have two steps to receiving the robot kits. Firstly, recipients receive the Starter Kit or access to make it first. The Starter Kit costs $11 dollars to make and is an introduction to basic STEM skills. Almost anyone can build this and it is very simple and perfect for large classrooms. After this, you can reapply for our Developer Kit. The Developer Kit costs $18.95 dollars to make and is an introduction to more advanced electrical wiring and diagramming. This kit also has a development board and requires coding. We supply The Developer Kit to organizations who successfully utilize our Starter Kit and are ready to keep building. The kits build off of each other and users must complete the Starter Kit first.
Instruction Support
We have two steps to receiving the robot kits. Firstly, recipients receive the Starter Kit or access to make it first. The Starter Kit costs $11 dollars to make and is an introduction to basic STEM skills. Almost anyone can build this and it is very simple and perfect for large classrooms. After this, you can reapply for our Developer Kit. The Developer Kit costs $18.95 dollars to make and is an introduction to more advanced electrical wiring and diagramming. This kit also has a development board and requires coding. We supply The Developer Kit to organizations who successfully utilize our Starter Kit and are ready to keep building. The kits build off of each other and users must complete the Starter Kit first.
Long-Term Programs
Our application form only indicates robot need. If you have special interest in building a maker space, curriculum, semester-long or long-term lessons centered around the robots, robotics program or club, or long-term program that you need support with we are here to help. Please inquire here after filling out your application to indicate your need.
bot rundown
2. type of robots
Your organization will likely fit into one of two categories:
A: Ready To Go
You want robot kits ready and assembled to be shipped to your school. The students would immediately be able to start building the robots. These robots are perfect for events, classroom projects, programs, club activities, long-term activities, and more.
B: Print It Yourself
You want to make the robots on your own by having access to files to 3D print the parts, to order the components, and to our unique learning tools.
If you are a corporation or large institution looking to put on a youth event with robots stop here and apply through the corporate events application here. This application is not intended for classrooms, clubs, or consistent youth programming efforts.
An example of a Verizon event serving Indigenous youth that we supplied robots and an instructor to.
3. criteria
Please read more about your option to see if it is the right fit for you.
A: Ready To Go
What You'll Get
You will receive almost everything you need to start building robots in your classroom. Internet access and computers are not necessary for the instruction period (but you will need to download teacher resources). We cannot ship batteries, so you will need to purchase those (9V). You will also need scissors and duct tape. If you cannot purchase these items yourself or do not have them then please state your need for support on your application. We are here to help.
Number of Robots & Notice
We are able to supply orders of 1-150 robots at this time and need a MINIMUM of a four month notice for your event if possible so that we have time to put together your robots. The longer the better and we often supply robots to events with a year notice. We can supply larger orders, but need a longer notice of a minimum of six months.
We are able to provide instructors for most events, usually virtually, and have a robust collection of materials to help you with the assembly process.
B: Print It Yourself
What You'll Get
You will receive access to our virtual learning platform with downloadable STL files to 3D print your own robot kits and the resources needed to learn how to build your kits. You will have links to places to purchase your own components from a third-party (we are not responsible for third-party purchases).
Location Criteria
This option is for organizations based in the United States only due to international copyright law and enforcement. If you are based in Canada, Australia, or South or Central America, please fill out our application and reach out to us at thesteamconnection@gmail.com for case-by-case decisions. All other regions are currently non-eligible at this time, please apply for option A: Ready To Go instead.
Applicants must be able to provide a legal representative of their organization that can sign our copyright agreement.
4. timeline
Please note that we do our best to screen everyone quickly, but please be patient with us. We are a small team of all youth volunteers and receive tens of thousands of applications weekly and have a significant lead time due to sheer quantity of applications received.
Wait before you email us and please read this. If you have an inquiry about your application status, if you application was received, want to make us aware of an urgent application, or have general questions do not send us an email. We will not reply. Use this support button instead.
A: Ready To Go
Our typical response type for applications is two to three months but may vary due to the quantity of applications received. We are unfortunately not able to reply to every applicant or send rejection letters due to the number of applicants.
Robots are distributed based on supply and our application process is very selective because of our capacity for manufacturing at this time. In the future we will be expanding, so please check our website in the future if you did not receive robots.
B: Print It Yourself
These requests can be approved within one to three months depending on the quantity of applications received. We are unfortunately not able to reply to every applicant or send rejection letters due to the number of applicants. Our screening process is looking for organizations that are a good-fit for this category, have the resources needed to make their own kits, and are capable of scale.
5. the application
You've made it this far! Here is the application form for robot kits. If you are a corporation or large institution looking to put on an event with robots, please fill out our corporate event application.
If you need support during the process, have questions, or want information on your application status, please click the support button below.
Every Kid Gets a Robot
The Application Process