Albers, L. A., & Carpenter, J. P., & Hopper, M. E. (2017, June), Starting a Rookie FIRST Robotics Competion Team: Lessons Learned  Paper presented at 2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Columbus, Ohio. 10.18260/1-2--28840

\bibitem{asee_peer_28840}
  Albers, L. A., \& Carpenter, J. P., \& Hopper, M. E. (2017, June), \emph{Starting a Rookie FIRST Robotics Competion Team: Lessons Learned}
  Paper presented at 2017 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, Columbus, Ohio.
  10.18260/1-2--28840

Lynn A. Albers, Jenna P. Carpenter, and Marie E. Hopper.  "Starting a Rookie FIRST Robotics Competion Team: Lessons Learned".  2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Columbus, Ohio, 2017, June.  ASEE Conferences, 2017.  https://peer.asee.org/28840 Internet.  19 Apr, 2024

\bibitem{asee_peer_28840}
  Lynn A. Albers, Jenna P. Carpenter, and Marie E. Hopper.
  "Starting a Rookie FIRST Robotics Competion Team: Lessons Learned".
  \emph{2017 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, Columbus, Ohio, 2017, June}.
  ASEE Conferences, 2017.
  https://peer.asee.org/28840 Internet.  19 Apr, 2024

@INPROCEEDINGS{asee_peer_28840
author = "Lynn A. Albers, Jenna P. Carpenter, and Marie E. Hopper"
title = "Starting a Rookie FIRST Robotics Competion Team: Lessons Learned"
booktitle = "2017 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition"
year = "2017"
month = "June"
address = "Columbus, Ohio"
publisher = "ASEE Conferences"
note = {https://peer.asee.org/28840}
number = {10.18260/1-2--28840}
}

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - Starting a rookie FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) team is daunting. In an effort to help overcome the fear factor, this paper includes lessons learned, tips for starting, techniques for recruiting, and strategies for retaining community engagement in STEM outreach. By sharing the lessons learned, the goal of this paper is to take the fear factor out of starting a FRC rookie team.

FIRST - For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology – is a global program that inspires students to learn and love STEM. FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) engages students in grades 9-12 to design and build a robot according to the competition specifications revealed at kick-off; marking the start of build season which lasts a little over six weeks. The students then travel to district events where a driveteam of four students operates the robot; competing in numerous matches over a two-day period to earn ranking points and ultimately qualifying for the State Competition. 

FRC is an excellent hands-on activity that promotes intellectual and emotional growth for all students involved. The opportunity for learning is immeasurable thereby making participation in FRC highly desirable. There is a need for more teams in order to give more students this learning opportunity. Unfortunately, the demand for more teams is coupled with a deficit of mentors. Many adults feel unqualified to mentor for numerous reasons. It is hoped that by sharing lessons learned of five, successful rookie teams, more adults will realize their potential for mentoring and/or starting a FRC team.

The 2016 FRC season was filled with excitement, a challenging competition design (FIRST Stronghold), and many talented youth, mentors, and leaders. This paper focuses on the lessons learned from five, successful rookie teams; analzying the data for common themes. The teams have provided lessons learned from the perspective of the lead mentors, specialized mentors, and the students; thereby creating a comprehensive list of helpful hints, techniques and strategies. 

AU  - Lynn A. Albers
AU  - Jenna P. Carpenter
AU  - Marie E. Hopper
CY  - Columbus, Ohio
DA  - 2017/06/24
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Starting a Rookie FIRST Robotics Competion Team: Lessons Learned
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/28840
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--28840
ER  -