Re: Convincing athlete to commit to robotics?
 

Oh my goodness @Fusion_Clint - this is a GREAT IDEA! I am not certain why we had not thought of this before! FRC 4607 CIS will be implementing the 'Church Lady Potluck' this coming season!

Sorry for all the exclamation points... but this is truly a ground-shaking -albeit overlooked - idea for us in Becker (where we have 3 Lutheran churches, 2 Catholic churches, and a number of other denominations in our community). We can feed the kids and welcome in a new group of people each weekend!

Thank you!

~Coach Jurek

Re: Convincing athlete to commit to robotics?
 

Not meaning to hijack the thread, but speaking of oft-overlooked sources of donations, local politicians during election years can be a great cash flow. If a $100 donation gets sponsors on the back of your shirt or your banner or your robot or whatever form of advertisement, usually just about every political running for office will respond favorably to a cold call.

At least that's been my team's experience. Your mileage may vary.

Re: Convincing athlete to commit to robotics?
 

When my sports coach asked me to commit to either my sport or to robotics, the breaking point for me was that it was not possible for me to go pro in sports, but I do plan on going pro in robotics.

Re: Convincing athlete to commit to robotics?
 

I'm glad to help out!

Re: Convincing athlete to commit to robotics?
 

To take this even wider, for an FRC team member to "take it pro" doesn't necessarily mean that his/her job title will be "roboticist". It could be any of the following, and probably a lot more besides:

• Roboticist
• Mechanical Engineer (Technician)
• Electrical Engineer (Technician)
• Pneumatics Engineer (Technician)
• Software Engineer (Technician)
• Systems Engineer (Technician)
• Materials Engineer (Scientist) (Technician)
• Machinist
• Welder
• Physicist
• Programmer
• Mathematician (including statistician)
• Sales
• Marketing
• Advertising
• Project planner/manager
• Administrator
• Executive agent
• Administrative Assistant

And OBTW, Veronica (my daughter) is planning to become an ASL (American Sign Language) signer and possibly teacher. As she pursues this career, I am certain that she will exercise skills she learned or developed while competing on FRC 3946. Everyone can turn pro from FRC, even if [s]he chooses a non-STEM career path.

Re: Convincing athlete to commit to robotics?
 

This part is also true of sports and other activities, however, if that's included in the definition of "going pro". Varsity basketball develops a large number of skills besides just bouncing a ball, to use Dean's phrase. The difference is really STEM focused.