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Where was the GP at Championships?
So I thought a long long while about how to bring this up and I figured posting it would be the best way.
Mind you the incidents stated are just specific examples, this was something that happened the entire weekend, not an isolated case of GP slipping someone's mind. I spent a lot of time taking the elevators up and down to get around the dome this Championship. It was early Friday when I got denied access, so I just smiled and waited for awhile (45 minutes) until someone showed up that would give me the clearance I needed to get me my badge, after all, the men and women working at the dome were just doing their job. It was in these elevators that I heard things that broke my hearts. For example, Saturday I was going to retrieve a camera case and entered an elevator to see the operator in near tears, when I asked what was wrong she informed me that a member of one of the teams had called her a B***** with a few expletives that came prior to the offensive word, all because the woman was doing her job and didn’t let the woman on the elevator. I tried to calm her down only to learn that she had heard that same phrase 6 times earlier that day, a day that she had only been working for 3 hours. The man who came in to relieve her for a bit said that he had been sworn at too, by both students and their parents. I started to listen a bit and heard people yelling at the guards when they said they couldn’t bring in water, or their flags. I’m sorry but if my grandmother heard me talk like that she would be turning over in her grave. GP is not something that just lives between conversations of FIRSTers, it should live everywhere. GP shouldn’t just come out for 7 weekends a year, it should come out 365 days a year. Thank you for your time and I hope that next year I don’t have to walk into an elevator and hear what I heard, I was disgusted. -Kelli |
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dude,
I'm speechless. If i EVER heard any member of any team say anything like that, I would have corrected them right then and there. I would also get their team number and gone directly to their pit to discuss such behavior. If I ever heard of one of my students acting in such a way i would demand they apologize to the offended party, the student would be put on probation and if it happened again they would be kicked off the team with no questions asked. I hold the tenet of GP too highly to allow such idiotic behavior to pass without action. PS: folks have to remember that volunteers/staff are people too. |
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I witnessed this as well.
A few team members and myself gently stopped a FIRSTer from another team who was screaming at a guard. Fortunately he calmed down quickly. I was embarassed for his team and for FIRST. As FIRST grows larger this will be more of a problem. The problems of society will start to creep into the FIRST experience. The answer is grassroots action. This can only be solved one team at a time. Coaches need to teach the underlying FIRST principles all year long and hold a very high standard for coaches, students, and parents. On our team, if you don't get the message, you don't travel! |
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I would go as far as to say this is not just an issue between team members and workers, volunteers, and event staff, but I would say this a problem between teams too.
There was an instance at the Boston Regional where students from another team ripped down the banner that some of our students spent hours working on the day before, and then ended up tearing our banner. Every time we put it back up, it was ripped down again. Then one of the students cursed at one of our college mentors, saying some very nasty things, for no apparent reason. Behavior at competitions and anywhere else for that matter not only reflects your team, your school, your town, even your state, but also represents FIRST. I know the majority of students in FIRST would not act that way, but "it only takes one bad apple to spoil the whole bunch" |
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I witnessed a similar thing from a distance on the way into the dome itself right before Einstein started.
It seems like some people have a problem with elitism, thinking they are "better" than the "hired help". In my experience, this is unfortunately not something you can expect to solve via a direct approach to the persons involved. |
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I did see some of this in the Pit. Not a whole lot, but some.
FIRST did initiate a new report this year, a 'Non-Medical Incident Report', and it WAS used at regionals and Championship. I don't know how they're going to use the information, but they need the information before they can use it. If you witnessed or were part of the receiving end of some non-graciously professional behavior, let FIRST know about it. Send an e-mail to frcteams@usfirst.org to let them know about it. Please include the team and/or person, if you are aware of it. |
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Well, that's awful.
I'm sorry to hear this, Kelli. ugh. The event staff should have a system in place for them to contact a FIRST staff member directly - to report these behaviors. They could be instructed to note the team numbers/colors/name and then report the incident(s). Then the team lead - mentor or parent - should be notified as to the behaviors and the consequences if these actions continue. (It's not too hard for FIRST to find these staffers for confirmation, they are at the entrances and in the elevators and they can't go anywhere.) There should be consequences. Thank you for thinking about how you wanted to introduce this topic into the CD fora and what you wanted to say, Kelli - Jane |
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One of my team's parents was doing traffic control on Saturday during load up in Atlanta once, and was cursed out by a mentor of a team we are friends with. She was crying, didn't know what to do, and many people checked with me to see if this team has always been hostile with us. I was shocked and saddened this had happened. I vow as a FIRSTer, a gentlemen, and a brother to never do this, and to stop it when I see it happen. Quote:
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It is a reality that, as FIRST grows and more teams and more participants join, the number of opportunities to both display and deny the tenets of gracious professionalism increase.
No team is immune to this. In just this past week I have seen some of the most amazingly professional behavior exhibited by a rookie team that obviously “gets it.” Simultaneously, I saw acts by a long-term veteran team that would have made Billy Martin and George Steinbrenner cringe in embarrassment. The intent here is not to point fingers, but to reinforce the idea that ALL participants in FIRST need to be aware of our behavior and how we act. This is not limited to just the things that happen at the Championship. This is true whether we are at a competition, in school, at work, at home, on a internet forum or chat room, or out in public. We may or may not be wearing a FIRST team shirt or be identified as a FIRST participant. But that shouldn’t matter. The principles of gracious professionalism are not to be taken off when the team t-shirt is removed. Our representation of our respective teams may come and go. But we always represent ourselves. It is how we each behave as a person – not as a team member – that matters. You can disagree with a referee’s call. You can be upset with a “silly rule” being enforced by an event employee. You can disagree with the policies of a school or sponsor. You can be angered by decisions made by FIRST or any other organization. There is nothing in the principles of gracious professionalism that dictates that you should simply roll over and accept any of these situations. The important part is HOW you decide you are going to react to them. You can scream and yell invectives at a referee, or you can present a logical, reasoned, supported argument for why you disagree with a call, and then elevate an appeal if a satisfactory solution is not found. You can verbally assault someone that is doing the job they were directed to do, or you can recognize that they have instructions that probably stem from a set of goals and concerns that are different than yours, and understand that the restrictions may source from a person different than the one standing in front of you. You can throw a tantrum over school board restrictions that prevent you from attending a certain competition, or you can become determined to do something about it and work within the system to enact a change to what you view as restrictive policies. You can post a series of vituperative missives on Chief Delphi about “dumb decisions” by FIRST, or you can find a way to make your displeasure known in a strong and unmistakable way that is also calm, respectful, not insulting, and acknowledging that there may be other factors associated with the decision of which you are not aware. Then you can volunteer to jump in and help find a solution. Our behavior – both good and bad – is contagious. Set a good example, behave in a mature, reasoned, professional manner and we will find that others around us will too. Throw tantrums, scream at officials, abuse those lower on the corporate food chain, and others may follow suit. We lead by example – the only choice is what type of example do we want to set? Remember, as the reports of the unfortunate incidents listed above indicate, your grandmother - and everyone else - is watching. -dave . |
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Well put Dave,
GP is a way of life we all should be striving to abide by, and in the mentioned situations, it was definitely lacking. As Dave said though, many people seem to have this vision that GP doesnt allow for standing up for one's rights, and standing up for what they feel is right. One fairly frequent CD-er has a sig that essentially states that GP is just that, Gracious Professionalism, not Granting Pleasantries (i think those were their words). |
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Kelli, I heard a lot of this too. I had to take the elevators about a trillion times a day, and I was always very nice to the Georgia Dome staff. However, I saw many instances of teams (and even volunteers) being rude to the staff. Yes, we're in the Dome all day, running around...things get crazy. Tensions can run high. But that is no excuse to stop demonstrating the gracious professionalism we have had ingrained in us from day 1.
As FIRST grows I think it is especially important to remember to teach GP by example- some teams don't get it taught to them as rookies because of inexperience, and some veteran teams don't demonstrate it as often as they should. However, most teams that I see are great. Those of us who do know what those two letters are all about should be teaching it to others. I've been lucky enough to have my grandparents at most of the events I have been to in the past, and learning GP by literally acting as if my grandmother was watching- because she was. I have always kept that in mind, and encouraged others to act the same way. Like Dave said above me- Gracious Professionalism does not mean letting things that bother you just roll off your back. You can, by all means, be against a decision or a rule set in place. It is HOW you react to those situations that really makes the difference. When the going gets tough, the smart keep their GP. :) |
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What you described, Kelli, was absolutely despicable. I don't know if those students/parents got what they deserved or not, but they should. unfortunately for them, though, an offense such as disregarding GP only has long-term effects; its the kind of thing that can lose a team's sponsor, respect from another team, job opportunities, or later in life get someone fired. I hope the offenders realized that in some simple actions they have probably ruined this 'robotics competition' for many people.
for shame. I know we had an incident in the Connecticut regional where a representative from a rookie team wanted to talk to us for alliance pairing. They weren't doing too well, about 40th in the rankings and didn't stand out much to our scouters. The went to talk to us, and happened to get into contact with the wrong person on our team who told them, "Sorry, we don't want to be with you. We are too good for you". That is another one of those little things that can absolutely ruin this program for people- and for a rookie team no less. We are still in a tough spot as to what to do with this person- she appears to be the person on our team who just doesn't and refuses to "get it". its sad, really. |
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GP is simple. If I can steal something from the Scouts:
A FIRSTer is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, brave, clean, and cheerful. I left out a few items from the Scout Law that are more in line with Scoutings mission than FIRST's, but we could do a lot worse than adopt a simple code like this. |
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At Nationals I noticed that the refs were a little overwhelmed. When we approached about a penalty given to us after we were pushed past a line marker they were not extremely happy and we lost the match. I guess the refs had been hearing all sorts of complaints and just couldn't take one more. =( It's really a shame that some teams and individuals have to resort to such hostility and unGP during the heat of competition. Hopefully the situation will improve in the future. |
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It is unfortunate that these events are happening but what Dave said is probably the best advice. We are fighting a culture here that recognizes that throwing a fit/cursing will get you attention and often times, sadly, results. I would be extremely embarrassed if it was one of my students or another Purdue FIRST team member/mentor.
At Midwest regional they asked all the volunteers to watch a video on GP but I am beginning more and more to think that we should have set it up for the teams to watch as well. FIRST is about leading instead of following and we need to make sure we lead our fellow mentors and students toward positive ideals. |
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When we checked in at the airport, the lady at the counter said "there was another team here before you and they weren't very nice at all. I never volunteering to do group check in again" I heard a similar thing from another one of the airport staff last year. This just isn't right.
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This is really terrible that this goes on but Dave nailed it.
Honestly i think it a best practice for teams to spend time on this issue. We have given 1 year team suspensions to students that don't get it and we will not hesitate to do that again. On a semi related issue it seem like, and several people mentioned it to me, that it seemed that the pits were unnecessarily messy. It seemed to go beyond the problems of having to travel long distances to Atlanta but went down to just bad habits. It isn't a tough leap to go from messy areas to messy minds. I'm not talking show booths, but just basic industrial hygiene. |
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Ellen,
The fact that you and your team are aware of this person's actions and concerned about it is what sets you apart from some other vetern teams that have developed an "elitist" attitude. I know that when representatives from our team approached yours, they were treated kindly and with respect, despite the fact that we, too, we mired in the 40s (although we believed and still believe our robot individually performed a lot better than that!!) I know for a fact, however, that they were not treated similarly by another highly ranked vetern team. Instead, they were told, quite abruptly, "Go away. We don't want to talk to you or work with you." Now, if you're in the top rankings and already have an idea of who your selections will be, that's all you have to do -- politely say that you have already made a short list for alliance selections and wish the team approaching you good luck in their quest. You never know -- next year your team may be the one needing an alliance partner and the team you dissed might be the one selecting partners. How likely do you think it is that a team you treated so rudely will want to work with you in the future? |
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This is one reason, perhaps, to expand the ways in which veteran teams mentor rookie teams.
Some rookie teams have mentors who were previously involved in FIRST; our lead mentor was an FLL coach before our FRC team was started, and the rookie team we mentored this year was an FRC judge and FLL coach. On these teams, consequently, GP was a core value from the beginning, taught to the students from day one. Our team has never, to my knowledge, had a severe problem concerning a lack of GP from either student or mentor. On teams which lack mentors with some kind of FIRST experience, however, it might be harder to wrap their collective heads around a concept of which they've never heard. I realize that it is not just rookie teams who occasionally fail to display GP - not by a long shot. However, ensuring that true rookie teams - the ones with no prior FIRST experience - understand GP and its importance could go a long way toward keeping the level of GP high within FIRST. Once a rookie team grasps the concept of GP, they are much more likely to continue passing it on to their future team members. |
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It seems that to some people GP doesn't exist. It also seems that some teams are not interested in either (a) the safety award or (b) basic industrial hygiene. Consequently their work areas 'go to pot' or whatever expression you choose. I saw just piles of junk and stuff in some pits. The regional we went to was across the board a lot neater than Atlanta. I had some adults tell me about an idea, and I have no idea how it could be done, but an concept where a team gets penalized for an unwillingness to get tidy and safe (which could be extended to GP). We have points and penalties on the robot field of play, but no where else. There were enough examples of a student playing 'jeopardy knowledge' with a judge but the actions in the pit clearly and obviously contradicted the statements. One of the reasons I noticed all this is we provided a lot of VIP tour guide support and I was thinking about how visitors external to FIRSTers would view this event. |
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Brave means to me that, if I were to witness someone treating anyone else rudely or ungraciously, I would take it upon myself to address them, to make it clear that that kind of behavior is unacceptable. I do it with my own kids, with team members, and although I am a generally shy person, I don't hesitate to do this with strangers - at least, at FIRST events. And I did do it in Atlanta. The point is that it MUST be a Grassroots effort by ALL of us to make sure offenders know that we will not accept that kind of behavior. THAT kind of peer pressure is very powerful. In a different direction, I went out of my way to be nice to the staff, volunteers, and anyone else I met. I got several staff members to smile and laugh, got a great hug from a security person, and a 'no, thank YOU' from a food vendor. Things go so much better when people smile. . |
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Im glad that you were treated with respect when you approached our team this year... that is how we try to get everybody to act, and typicall the people who act mean are barred from staying in the pits. This one kid though made such a fuss about it, and in the end probably completely demoralized a rookie team. I'm glad you guys didn't have the 'pleasure' of talking to this person; we really do respect you guys. ive come to believe though that it is almost never a team who develops the elitist attitude, but rather certain individuals that haven't been dealt with. i have a hard time believing that there would be veteran teams to would be completely made up of snobs- they have had the longest for GP to be settled in and passed on. of course, i haven't meet everyone. |
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The lack of GP can be blatent or subtle.
Many people were wearing team Media badges with no intent on taking photos or writing articles about their teams... but were OK when I asked them to leave the field unless they were truly media people (I think that's horrible that someone would try and use that badge just to have access to the field so they can coach their teams or scout). During Saturday afternoon we were sitting in the reserved section for VIPs awaiting the start of finals on Einstein when several teams started to fill in the seats. Show Ready personnel asked them to leave and most did. A venue staffer was brought in to monitor the area and one team in particular was rude. We were shocked. We witnessed several other instances of rude behavior at the many other regional events we attended this year. It's a shame that the isolated incidents overshadow all the great behavior shown by the majority of people there. |
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I think it can never be stated enough that GP is not just at an event, or even in the build site- It is how we (mentors students parents) represent the FIRST Organization, our actions directly effect our Teams, School, Sponsoring Oragnizations and Communities. We are all eager to recognize the "Village" that is takes to build a team when we are fundraising, and looking for mentors but do we keep the "Village" in mind every day as we represent them.
FIRST's tolerance (intentional or unintentional) of poor or unacceptable behavior does not help the issue. I came to be involved with FIRST due the the fact that I beleived part of GP was fostering a moral, honest, reverent, suuportive learning atmosphere for the students we have the priviledge of working with. How to follow directions, how to represent your community with pride. Winning is not the goal, building the bot is secondary, it is the lesson we learn, the experiences we share that are the foundation of the program. Not that rules are meant to be broken or are for "other" people. It is not what you can do for your team THIS year-- but what can you do to provide for the teams of the future. A good reputation is PRICELESS. We (here in FIRST) have unfortunately learned the hard way how easily a few people's actions can effect everyone. |
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With all the bad reports, I thought I'd throw in a good one. Remember, as someone else already said - the "bad" stuff tends to stand out in your mind, and the good gets brushed away and forgotten.
At the Great Lakes Regional, I got VERY excited (I'm a little embarrassed to say overly so) at a couple of the calls that didn't go our way. Guess who kept their heads? 2 of students on the team the arm driver and our robocoach. Yes, even mentors get excited :D - and the students are the ones with "level" heads. Remember - it's this simple. If you see an abuse of any type by a FIRST'er, first tell them, and if you don't get the reaction you expect, tell their mentors. For many of you who haven't been in a work environment, this is one of the hardest things to do. In fact, we (as professionals) are evaluated on how well we talk to people we work with when we see them doing something wrong, or violating safety protocalls. It's not just for a good job - our promotions and raises depend on it. It's that important - and people don't tend to be very good at it until they've practiced it. |
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At a regional I volunteered at, one of the other volunteers told me to get some media people away from the field because they were right next to one of the field exits, where they could be injured. I asked them politely to move, they moved 1 foot, and then a few seconds later moved back to their original spot.
They were rude and disrespectful when we were trying to watch out for their own safety. I had to be a bit more assertive and tell them to move for their own safety. They finally moved, but one of the media people got hit by a trackball. |
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OOPS! I saw Uberbots and forgot that she's smurfgirl. Good point about not the whole team that's elitist, although I still say what makes you guys special is that you take the time to correct the problem when it happens. If it's not corrected, it's easy to spread, and that's how I think a team could get labeled as snobbish, even though, most likely, not all members are that way.
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I only saw one particular case of un-GP it happened at the door of gate B. a mentor of a prominent championship semifinalist (who will go un named, I don't point fingers) was entering the gate. Unfortunately this man had such an attachment to his hazelnut creamer coffee that when he was told that it was not allowed in and he'd have to dispose of it or drink it to gain entry, he hollered at the door staff, then chucked it over 6 feet across the ground right by the trash can.
Being appalled as I was, I immediately picked up his cup, lid and holder and kindly placed it in the trash can. Then took the last 5 sips of my coffee and gladly entered. The man told me thank you, and I told him not to thank me. I told him sorry he had to deal with that. Fortunately for me, that was the last and only un-gp behaviour I saw all day. We need to all remember we are no better than our fellow man, no matter what job we all hold, what socio-economic status that's involved, or anything. Plain and simple, we're all fellow travelers on this pale blue dot called Earth. |
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I'm speechless... I don't know what to say... although, it's not entirely shocking.
at the warp party, a few of our team members were walking, and another kid literally ran into one of us, and shoved him aside. No reason at all, just passing us, Didn't know us, so it wasn't like a friendly like arm punch or anything of the sort, just a random act of violence. I think the root of the problem is people who "don't get it" and this problem is faced by every team, every year. When new people come into the program, they don't really "get" first yet. And it's only after they've worked all build season, that they gain a respect for everyone else involved in FIRST. I really have no solution for this, besides get everyone involved more, engage them and show them how much work everyone is doing so they gain a respect for it... But also, there will *always* be people who are like this, and no program will ever change that. |
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I am amazed at all these situations, and I agree with everyone who notes that as this community grows, we are going to pick up a few bad eggs, it's simply inevitable. What we do need to do is first, continue to emphasize the message of gracious professionalism, both on and off the field. Really have students understand what "I graciously accept" means. We need a reporting system that allows staffers and volunteers to report any incidents of ungracious behavior (honestly, yelling at event staff is simply unacceptable, no one has any right to feel elitist to them), and I feel that FIRST needs to in some way make Gracious Professionalism a bigger part of the awards. Yes it's not what we're directly here to teach (science/tech education), but let's set ourselves truly apart from other sports by emphasizing sportsmanship even more. A sportsmanship award is a good start, but let's also look at ways that could competitively make a difference and strongly encourage, even coerce, people into playing nice with one another. While this may only really make a difference in a FIRST competition, I think that people will find that the behavior and general feel of such an event will be something they will want to emulate and carry over into their everyday lives.
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THIS IS ALL MY OPINION, feel free to argue or diagree, it helps build self esteme:P
It is exceptionally difficult not to feel aggresive or angry about something. I am a active participant in soccer and FIRST, both of which I have periods of anger towards something/one. The thing that seperates GP from flat out rudeness is how you control your anger. If I really need to, I will run it through my head a few times and then think out why that happened, or forget it all completly. If you can keep a bright and welcoming attitude to a person who angers or annoys you, I feel that is defenitly the hight of GP. I'm proud to say that I witnessed no unGP at Colorado, even the winners of the Finals actually came over to congradulate us when our robot hurdled for the first time in its final match of the day. I thought this was an amazing feat. |
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I would hope that FIRST would do something about it. They apparently did something about the people who worked to hack their website AND they plan on doing it to people using wireless for "malicious" purposes next year, why not make the list a little longer? All they need to do is send a message to team leaders (whom I hope were not involved). How hard would it be to set up a <frcXXXX@usfirst.org> account or even via TIMS and let all of the leads know what kind of behavior their team is exemplifying. I bet after the first year or two, we'd see more "GP" in play.
On that note, I wonder if judges talk to staff before giving awards. Although you never suspect "role model" teams that win Chairmans or EI of such behavior, you never know and this is definitely something that should be part of the process... maybe. Pavan. |
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The more and more I read about GP I swear it’s become some sort of god like behavior. If you just give people common courtesy, and treat others like you want to be treated, you will be GP. It’s not a new concept, its just something that is stressed a lot more than normal in this program then other programs.
Also let’s face some facts, this is a sport, and there will be some bad blood between people sometimes, rivalries will occur, some heated discussion, and many other things that always happen in sports. But that doesn’t mean you can’t keep your head on, and there never is an excuse for being rude to someone who is doing their job. Face it some people are total jerks, and probably will never change. But yea, it is kind of sad. |
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Excuse the odd reference, but I'm involved in my school's musical of South Pacific, so I'm stealing a line from that for the purpose of my statement: "You can't put back a petal when it falls from a flower." In other words, we can talk about what happened at Regionals and at Championships all we want to. We can express our disgust with the behaviours that we saw and hope that those reading this thread take it as a learning experience to keep better watch on their teams, or more seriously impliment the principles and basic moral values associated with GP. But what if that doesn't happen? What can we really do?
Discussing what happened in the past is great, as it helps us learn, but we can't truly do anything about it. We can call up those staffers at Nationals and make sure they were properly apologized to (In fact, that might be a decent idea... if it doesn't make you sound like a stalker), but that's just about it. Unless teams start teaching GP hardcore, then incidents like that are, unfortunately, going to continue to happen. You can't keep doing the same thing and teaching the same things and expect different results. If nothing changes in respect to how important GP is on your team's prioroty list, then the team will not hold GP any higher than they did in the previous year. What needs to change is not necessarily the people, because the people can learn if they are taught. But that's the emphasis: IF THEY'RE TAUGHT. A lot of the blame in this thread has been put on the students/offending persons, as it should be. Ultimately, people are responsible for their own actions, but how do they learn? They learn the most from those who are their mentors. This doesn't mean the the mentors are "horrible people" or only "show unGP towards their teams," not at all. What it means is that MORE emphasis needs to be placed on GP on each and every FIRST team. Until that happens, the number of incidents like this may decrease, but they will always be around, as sad as it makes me to say it. P.S. If this offended anyone, I'm truly sorry, it was not my intention. I tried to be constructive in what I was saying while getting a point across, and I hope I succeeded in that. But if someone interprets something I've said in an offensive manner, please, let me know and I'll personally apologize to you. I don't want to anger/upset people today. =D --Danni --393 |
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That is absolutely horrible. I am disgusted by the fact that they made someone cry. This should be immediately corrected although as many have said above, it probably will not solve the problem. I guess that as FIRST grows there will only be more incidents of this. The only solution is to stop it in the team and make sure that there is some consequence for being non GP. There are different levels of non GP but this is just unacceptable.
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I have read of the non-GP incident at Palmetto.. personally I never saw or heard of any which is a good thing cause I have almost zero tolerance for insolence from anyone. I wish people would point fingers and name names... if someone sees (name) from team XXXX doing this or that... post it for all to say, hey (name) that wasn't kewl. If a whole team has problems with GP letting the rest of us know would be nice. I and any team I might work with just might not to associate with rude, un GP teams.
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There were also instances where I saw people wearing badges of whom they did not belong to. I saw a highly respected mentor give their VIP badge to someone else so they could wear it on the field. To me, neither of these acts were gracious, professional and instead just selfish. When will this stop? :confused: Sorry, now that my rant is over, I would like to echo and sum up what people have said as a possible solution to all of this: -It starts with one person, you don't have to be the head mentor or the student leader to spread the idea of GP, it starts with a small voice -Everything you do is contagious, your actions one minute can be someone else's the next. -When you're about to make a decision, say anything or take an action, just remember, "would my grandma approve?" If not, chances are you shouldn't. |
Re: Where was the GP at Championships?
Correct me if I am wrong here, but I believe the Devil Duckies, Team 1266, have had one of the best ideas for maintaining Gracious Professionalism.
They put stickers on all of the team members. This sticker has the phrase, "Hows my Gracious Professionalism?" a phone number, and a number for the student. This allows you to report members of the team who are acting a little un-GP without making a scene. If it's just meant to be another, "hows my driving" joke, maybe it shouldn't be, its a good idea. Perhaps if everyone adopts this idea some of the un-GP incidents will decline. Anyone from 1266, how well has this system been working for you? |
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Well going along with this idea, college football players have stickers on their helmets if they have a good practice, and often the leaders are chosen based on this system. It's a highly respected practice and is taken seriously. Maybe a similar idea can be implemented to a FIRST team? |
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You don't do GP and Safety for the award. You do it because it is the right thing to do. |
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I personally somewhat used my position this weekend, and if it was wrong I apologize. After we finished up with FLL on Einstein on Thursday and Friday afternoons, I wandered over to Curie to see how my daughter's FRC team was doing. Thursday I talked to the queuer and found they weren't scheduled for over an hour, so I wandered back off and went to the stands. Friday the team was in the "on deck" area, so I went to speak with them for a moment, and then stood off to the side near the AV booth to watch the match. I don't see either as abuse of the system. Even though I was an extra person on the floor, not needing to be there, that was the only way I would have seen their match. After volunteering for 2 days, not being able to see them at all, I wanted to take advantage of my opportunity to see them once. Had I made a nuisance of myself, getting in the way of robot paths and such, I could see how that would be a problem. I don't think that's what we're talking about; it's just like having the parent use the media pass to get a closer view. |
Re: Where was the GP at Championships?
I can't believe this happened...
I could maybe understand if it was non-FIRST people that thought they'd see what all the to do was about but... FIRST kids? Wow. I only hope that none of our team was the instigator of any of this stuff... though I guess that'll always be a mystery since probably nobody would say anything even if it was them. BUT! On the positive side, I think there was a LOT of GP at the Championship. Many times teams went out of their way to assist other teams... and I know I saw many 'tour groups' of people that were originally going to go to the auto show being led by students in their team shirts... ...team 1108 had their warehouse-like pit that had everything from Allen Wrenches to Zip Ties. (including CIM motors! :ahh: ) ...team 48 the Delphi Elite had their safety escorts on the prowl (ALL DAY I might add... you all deserve a massage. :] ) ...Many teams helped out our Israel teams as their tools were all 220v. There are many more, I'm sure, but these four are the ones that stand out most. We at 1024 did our part as well, lending tools, hands, and expertise... and whenever not busy, wandering the pits and looking for eager looking roboticists that'd love to tell you all about their machine. (though personally I tend to go for the pits where people don't look like they're having the best day ever). Yes, people screwed up at Championships, and it's not something to be overlooked. Swearing at a volunteer is not acceptable. But, also remember there's a ton of FIRST people that did a GP job last weekend in Atlanta. -q |
Re: Where was the GP at Championships?
I'd like to just take it back to the OP's message about the staff of the event.
They are not FIRSTers. They are staff hired to do their job. It is their livelihood. The 2 elevator staff I saw had stools in their corner of the world while they pushed buttons to go up and down all day. I'm sure they have to manage their time and follow the company's guidelines and rules regarding personal breaks and meals. They are basically stuck in the elevator with the people they are servicing.That is no reason whatsoever, for anyone associated with a FIRST team to call them names or verbally abuse them. It's wrong. We can talk about the good things teams do. I can talk for days without stopping. That was not the point of this thread. It was to address how the staff were treated at the event. There should be a system in place (if there is not already) for them to summon their supervisor and for the supervisor to report the troubles to the appropriate FIRST staff person to get this behavior nipped in the bud. |
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Next year, many of these same Dome staffers will be working our event. I suggest that we spread the word and make a concentrated effort to do random acts of kindness toward these people. We've got a year to think about what things we can do. What are some ideas? Andy |
Re: Where was the GP at Championships?
As much as I usually despise signage, It might be useful for FIRST to place the "approved to use this" signs
(The ones that had pictures of the red and yellow volunteer badges, Media badges, Production company badges, ect... of all those approved to enter an area.) by the elevators and limited access doors. Then the Dome staff could simply point unapproved badge holders' attention to the sign. But the only place I saw them was deep in the bowels of the Dome under the Newton stands where unapproved access was not really a problem. --------------------------- I would like to give kudos to the two students (from 703 I believe) who on their way to the dome one morning, noticed that the American flag outside of GWCC - Bldg. A had come down, and they stopped to re-post the colors and properly tie off the rope before continuing on to the dome/pits. |
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There's something we can do right now: Tell their bosses how much we appreciated them. http://www.gwcc.com/feedback.html
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I definitely noticed how many employees were smiling and cheerful as I walked in various sections of the complex. I thought this was an unusually high occurence relative to other places I typically frequent. I got the feeling that these were genuine pleasantries and not some mannerisms forced upon them by their superiors. I thought this was pretty dang neat. Security, elevator operators, etc. were all pleasant. I made sure to return the favor with a "Good Morning!" or "Hi, how ya doin?". That's all that is needed, I feel. |
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Andy |
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There acronyms and monikers that describe things at FIRST, like GP for example. Would it be useful to have something that helped encourage students to consciously reached out to the staff with some love and support ? (I know we are supposed to do that anyway, but) Probably it would be best if GP was extended to incorporate this. Of course it is there implicitly we we can do a little nudging. We want the staff think of the event as not just another bunch of people but WOW, what a really cool bunch of people !!! |
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It'd go a long way just to take time to stop and chat briefly with the volunteers who have to sit in the same spot all day doing the thankless jobs that go unnoticed by most passersby. Especially the volunteers we are constantly passing going back and forth from the pits to the dome. The elevator operators, queuers, those directing traffic at the crossways of FRC/FTC/FLL teams, overworked volunteer coordinators,... We may not have time rushing to make a match, but the return journey isn't too hectic to slow down and exchange a few words, hand them a button or team giveaway.
Common courtesy is always appreciated. It helps to understand the abuse they may be exposed to and to think about countering any bad experiences they have. We had a volunteer policing the robot team exit from the pits and she felt emotionally abused by all the people who'd ignore her polite requests. People without passes or badges of any sort who walked right past her. A teacher with a pack of young school children trailing behind her who was stopped then barged through the trundling robot traffic. Our volunteer and another young college woman just couldn't take it by the end of the first day. I noticed FIRST replaced them with larger male volunteers better able to refuse entrance to perennial gate crashers. Did my survey too. :) |
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Snarly mentors have snarly teams. Considerate, respectful and professional mentors generally have such teams. I see my behavior and attitude reflected and amplified in my students (not always good, I'm afraid). I'm not advocating a lack of intensity - that's different!
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That particular entrance needs to be manned by aspiring bouncers. |
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It'd be neat to have a button that said something like:
'Atlanta rocks and so do you' - to hand out to staffers and folks at hotels, restaurants, etc. That's a thought. |
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I do want to mention that sometimes we may hear or view something out of context, then assume it was un-GP. For example; my glasses broke on Sat. morning. Our team was near the top of the stands and all I could see was blogs and blurs on the field. While my son was in the pit trying to fix my glasses, I wandered down to a team sitting in the first several rows, and asked if I borrow seat to see our team's upcoming match. They agreed. As our kids prepared to take the field, a mentors turned and said (with a smile) "You are just sitting here the one match, right?". My son, as he was returning with my fixed glasses, overheard the comment and jumped to the conclusion that I was being given a hard time. I assured my son that everything was fine, it was just adult's friendly banter. By missing the "smile and wink", my son took something out of context. After the match, I went back to my team and had to explain the "real story"; that GP was still alive and well. Several unGP displays are unfortunately accurate. However, *sometimes* there is another side. And I love the "how's my GP?" buttons as well as "appreciation" buttons. |
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The venue manager (Mary Katherine?) speaks to the volunteer staff during Wed night orientation. I sought her out on Friday and told her how wonderful her staff was. I wish I'd paid more attention to staffers' names so I could have given specific examples, "John has been so pleasant to us over the past three days, always greeting us in the morning, etc."
I had received several complaints that media badged persons were being turned back at the entrance to the Dome. I went to investigate. It turns out that the signage we had provided there did not include team media badges, only "professional" media badges (like CNN). The staffer was doing what he was instructed to do, not allowing access to anyone without a badge from the sign! It took us a while to get it straightened out but I can't fault the staffer. I applaud him for doing what we wanted him to do! And after standing with him for several minutes while we waited for a supervisor, I wouldn't want his job for anything. I can't tell you how many drivers and coaches put their buttons on their sleeves, their pants, on their shirts in the middle of a bunch of other team buttons, on their shirts UNDERNEATH hoodies, etc.! That doesn't help speed up the process of getting into the Dome at all. |
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(Or, alternatively, maybe it's time to consider alternative pass forms for events since an operator badge can easily be drowned out in a sea of buttons...but that's another thread.) |
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If people would just calm down, take a deep breath, and be a good sport/do the right thing, the world would be a better place. Forget this "OMG THAT WASN'T GP!" and remember what you were taught in school, by family, by friends, and others. What happened to "doing the right thing even when no one is looking?" I guess GP is 2 characters versus a story/phrase thats been passed down since the Romans and beyond. Enough of GP and start being good sports.
Pavan . |
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As a volunteer this year, i also saw a good bit of this behavior up close and personal. Frankly, i was appalled by it, but i wont be elaborating on that point too much.
Honestly, i think we NEED to make sure people treat the staffers there with equal respect as we give our peers at this event. Is it so hard to keep yourself from feeling superior to these men and women who work hard the same way everyone did on their robots? Sure, you may be in a hurry and need to get somewhere fast, but DONT blame the staff for this - many of them are INCREDIBLY nice, sociable people and many of them love this event [our team, the Circuitrunners, works at the Georgia Dome selling Papa John's for fundraising occasionally] because it brings in good business and many different people from all around the world. Please, everyone, show your respect and thankfulness to the staff at the GWCC and Georgia Dome by sending them comments on their website and listening to the wise thoughts of Mr. Dave Lavery [first page of replies] - Doug |
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For starters, the operator buttons for FRC, FTC, and FLL should be different colors. After working the door between FTC & FLL to the dome all Thursday I know this problem well. The media passes were actually easiest to see, mostly because of the lanyard. The teams aren't consistent with button placement. How about we just give out operator safety glasses and solve two problems at once? Can you imagine how easy it would be for a queuer to say: Do you have your driver safety glasses on? Good. As for the Georgia Dome staff I would like to thank lady who stood guard at the FTC & FLL door all Thursday. I would also very much like to the thank the lady reminding people to put their safety glasses on at the FRC pit on saturday morning. I would also like to thank the person who went and bought her a Starbucks coffee after hers was spilled. The small act surely made her day go better and therefore everyone who had the pleasure of being reminded to protect their eyes as well. |
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I said "We have high expectations of these students, mentors and parents. If you see any behavior that is not gracious, please let your superior know and have them let FIRST know." There were a few instances where I felt the "rules" didn't make sense (and in some cases were safety issues), was able to get the people that had the ability to make decisions and I made some suggestions. ;) I like the random acts of kindness gestures. Maybe we could provide lanyards to the house staff and they could collect buttons too! I also like a formal process to give feedback to the judges before the final awards are locked in, by the house staff and the field crew (this is done at the regionals I've been involved with). |
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I just finished the survey for the Dome.... great idea!!!
I try to hand out little "skunk" pins to the volunteers as we come upon them. Its just a nice way to say we appreciate them... I even gave pins to two of the airport personnel when our plane was overbooked and they got all of our kids on the plane so they could all get back to Seattle as a group.. (some of us mentors stayed behind ...) They were actually astonished that someone would thank them... they are so used to being 'beaten up" by passengers... If you witness GP in action.... you need to thank those that do it too... Seeing someone thank someone is also worthy of praise... It is truly amazing what how this kind of attitude can change society... |
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woohoo I promise on my honor to try to be nice - and earn a skunk pin. Yup. |
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Something for you all to think about. While we're sitting here discussing this issue, talking about what changes should be implemented, etc., where are the offending teams/members now? I know for a fact the almost all of the teams in my area don't even know about this forum, let alone the discussions going on within. While I'm not expecting every member of every team to be actively on the site (though it would be nice!) there should be more of an effort to "recruit" more people here to the point of having a minimum of one person (preferably a mentor) from each team actively checking the site, engaging in conversation, etc. It's also good for networking, asking for help in a pinch, and general chit-chat with other "enthusiasts". |
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I know its like that here in Greensboro. Nice thought anyway, just saying hi, how you doing? Or thank you, can go along way. Event staff seldom here such kind words. |
Who Is The Elevator Operator?
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Send me an IM if any facts are known. Dave |
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-Kelli |
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