Updated 6/10/2026
2026-2027 RECF Robotics Programs Team Registration Fee: $175 per team
2026-2027 Aerial Drone Competition Team Registration Fee: $200 per team
A limited amount of funding may be made available for organizations who are eligible for the Team Registration Fee Waiver program, which is explained below.
Visit the Organizational Policy in the RECF Library for more information about how organizations are defined.
School-based organizations and non-profit organizations will not be able to register for their first event without proper documentation that is approved by the Regional Support Manager.
Team Registration Fee Waiver Eligibility Requirements
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The organization must be either:
- A “public school” or “charter school” as designated by the National Center for Education Statistics.
- A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization as recognized by the IRS effective on or before 6/10/2026.
- Must be a returning organization, meaning, the organization registered and paid with the RECF for the 2025-2026 season.
- Must register and pay for at least six (6) registered teams for the 2026-2027 season.
Acceptable Forms of Documentation
- School Based Organizations: A letter from a school administrator on school letterhead confirming support for team.
- Non-Profit Organizations: A copy of the organization's 501(c)(3) document.
Application Link
- 2026-2027 RECF Fee Waiver Application (select "Fee Waiver Application" under form type.
Rationale for Increased Documentation for School-Based Organizations
- New School-Based Organization initiatives require more reliable/accurate data
- Starting in the 2025-2026 season, two new initiatives were started to incentivize school-based organizations and events: School-Based Tournaments and the Conference Pilot. Both of these initiatives require accurate organization identification in RECFEvents.com to ensure the proper organizations are allowed to participate in those event types. As we continue to expand opportunities for school-based organizations, we have to ensure that organizations are properly identifying themselves. In addition, when we promote our initiatives to school-based organizations that may not currently be connected with our programs, we want to ensure that what we are promoting is backed by reliable data.
- Protection of School-Based Organizations
- The Robotics Education & Competition Foundation (RECF) is seeing an increase in organizations claiming to have school-based affiliation and support when in reality that is not true. We have reached out to several schools regarding Code of Conduct concerns, questions about program operations, etc., and are often met with responses indicating that the school is not aware of, nor has any connection to the robotics program the Primary Coach listed in RobotEvents.com. This is both a concern for us and for the organization the Primary Coach is falsely representing.
The RECF understands that requiring this documentation is one extra step for school-based organizations. We hope that the rationale for this process clearly states why this is necessary to ensure our school-based organization initiatives are properly implemented and protected.