FIRST is a non-profit organization with the mission to inspire high school students in math, science and technology. It was founded by Dean Kamen in 1989 and has since grown to more than 4000 teams, and has spread to other countries such as Canada, Brazil, England, and Israel. FIRST also promotes the philosophy of gracious professionalism, a term used to describe a code of behavior which values community, promotes quality in work, and emphasizes respectful behavior toward others.

In each FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC), teams from around the world compete in a game created by FIRST. The rules of the game are revealed to the teams in January, in an event that kicks off build season. Build season continues for six more weeks, at the end of which the robots are shipped to competition sites.

Team 4’s roots began with Team 22 from Chatsworth High School. High Tech High split from Team 22 after two years and formed its own team in 2005. When registering, the team was given the opportunity to choose a retired team number, as it was not seen as a rookie team. Thus, Team 4 ELEMENT was established. ELEMENT stands for Engineering, Leadership, Entrepreneurship, Mentoring, Education, Networking, and Teamwork. The logo is the Phoenix, the colors are turquoise and black, and the motto is Igniting the Flames of Passion.