2024-2025 Signature Event Application Season

The 2024-2025 Signature Event Application Season is now officially open. Like last year, we are beginning the process early as it worked very well. Planning a Signature Even takes a lot of time and effort. We have made a few changes/updates for next season:

Application Updates for the 2024-2025 Season:

  • Current Signature Events need only to complete the Final Application (already sent to those EPs) by March 31, 2024.
  • For new Signature Event concepts, a completed and approved Initial Proposal is required by January 31, 2024. Upon approval, the Final Application will be sent and must be completed by March 31, 2024.

Signature Event Updates for the 2024-2025 Season:

  • No blended Signature Events (single grade level only)
    • Rationale: Signature Events are designed to give a Worlds level experience and blended events are not part of the Worlds structure.
    • Feedback from teams strongly suggests teams playing with their own grade level is preferred.
    • Note: An Event Partner is more than welcome to run 2 or more grade level specific events simultaneously or separately.
  • VIQRC Signature Events may have regional capacity and max per organization restrictions lifted 8 weeks before the event if the event is not full.
    • Rationale: It is harder and sometimes more expensive for VIQRC teams to travel as we know with VEX Worlds.
    • This potentially allows VIQRC events that are not full to add more local teams to give that World Class experience to those who may not be able to travel long distances.

Like last year, all 2024-2025 Signature Events will be revealed at VEX Worlds.

Feel free to review the updates in the REC Library:

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I understand the rationale behind moving away from blended signature events, where teams from different grade levels participate together. While there is a clear advantage in having teams compete within their own grade levels, as a teacher and coach, I believe there is significant value in promoting interactions among students from different grades outside the classroom. High school students can serve as excellent mentors for their middle school counterparts. However, it’s important to note that not all organizations, schools, or regions have well-established VEX programs spanning middle and high schools, forming a seamless pipeline.

The decision to separate middle and high school events on different days, as part of the World Championship structure, has the unintended consequence of limiting opportunities for curious middle schoolers to witness the capabilities and inner-working of high school teams’ robots for the same game. Blended signature events used to provide middle school teams with the chance to see the best robots in action. Unfortunately, due to security measures for signature events, pit areas are typically off-limits to the general public. This means that unless the teams are competing in the event, it becomes challenging for students to explore the robots and engage with other participants. The removal of blended Signature Events effectively closes the door to this eye-opening learning experience, which holds particular value for middle school teams, often constrained by tighter travel budgets.

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