Re: What makes a Team a full "FIRST Team"?
 

I second this motion

Re: What makes a Team a full "FIRST Team"?
 

Where do we put all the "Free Hugs" kids?

Re: What makes a Team a full "FIRST Team"?
 

We could call them the (Woody) Flower(s) Children.

I would first like to point out the flaw in the wording of my question. I in no way meant for the question to be translated literally. I wanted to discuss things that we like to see teams practice, so they can fully embrace the spirit of first. (post 10 understands my question)

I don't see encouraging teams to embrace the first ideals as a bad thing. I am for encouraging teams to build a great robot, and for enabling as many people as possible to gain that invaluable experience, but "first is more than just robots". There is a reason first emphasizes the fact that chairmans is the most prestigious award at first.

I am the business/marketing lead on my team. I have gained invaluable experience in business not comparable to any of the other 71 clubs at my school. (We are a club according to the school system) I want other people interested in things other than computer science and engineering to gain the same experience first provides to me as well.

Re: What makes a Team a full "FIRST Team"?
 

I agree that this is something I'd like to see less of. In my opinion, so long as you don't have a scheduling conflict forcing an early departure, the gracious and respectful thing is to stay through awards, even if you aren't in elims/playoffs. It's also a bit awkward when a team earns an award but has already left.

Re: What makes a Team a full "FIRST Team"?
 

I don't really like the title, but as with any widespread organization with independently operated teams/locals/chapters/congregations, there are going to be some teams which just go through the basic motions and those which exemplify the parent organization's purposes. Good examples of FIRST teams:

• Inspire and teach student members to STEM and related careers
• Show team spirit and pride, without any rancor to other teams
• Teach leadership skills to members (and mentors and other teams)
• Exhibit gracious professionalism, on and off the field, year round
  • Mentoring outside teams/clubs/individuals
  • Lending tools, parts, and labor to other teams - not just alliance partners
  • Cheering for other teams, just because they're really trying
  • Exhibit thankfulness, humility, and poise
• Do community outreach and service (over and above fundraising and recruitment activities!)
• Work to change the community of their school, neighborhood, city, state, country, world
• Reach across and bridge the factors which keep people apart, whether gender, race, creed, color, affluence, popularity, athleticism, or whatever
• Generally build their program over the years
• Have fun doing all of the above

(This list is not exhaustive, just the first few things I thought of.)

Re: What makes a Team a full "FIRST Team"?
 

Perhaps you need to re-read the full criteria used to decide who has earned the Chairman's Award, and also reflect on why FIRST was created (inspiring students, changing culture(s), ...). The robots are the tools, not the purposes.

Re: What makes a Team a full "FIRST Team"?
 

Agreed. Saw a few of those awards at GTR Central. Lots of applause, then awkward applause, then... "Oh well, looks like they've left."

It would have to be a pretty tight schedule to have to leave early though. What if you had been on the winning alliance? You'd have left early and not collected your award? No, you would have made time to stay... so you can make time and stay.

Re: What makes a Team a full "FIRST Team"?
 

I can understand why a team would do that. Let's say were Bomb Squad coming from Arkansas to Chicago for the Midwest Regional, they left on Thursday at 2am and arrived around noon. That is a 10 hour drive. If I had to make that drive back and wasn't staying in Chicago on Saturday I would leave as early as possible. (Bomb Squad didn't leave early, I'm just making a point)

I'm just saying for some teams they have a reason they might want to leave early, others don't.

Re: What makes a Team a full "FIRST Team"?
 

I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but we had a 10 hour drive to one of our two district events, and it will be 10 hours to the district championship.

Now, there was a chance in week 5 that a lift bridge might have been closed for 13 hours, cutting two local teams off from getting home, and they might have decided to leave early to get home before that (which I'm totally cool with). Thankfully the closure didn't take place, and those two teams also earned awards.