[Basel A]

I'd like to bring up a rather old quotation, from a kickoff workshop in Manchester, back in 1998...

"I think they mean well, and I understand what you’re saying, there needs to be a balance, but I heard people saying, 'well sure that other team did great, but that's because the engineers did all the work. The kids didn’t build the robot.' I have to tell you, FIRST is not an educational institution. Its okay if the kids build the whole robot, its okay if they don’t touch it." -Dean Kamen

He goes on to talk about how FIRST is meant to be inspirational, and not necessarily educational, but I think that about sums up the point, that it simply doesn't matter who does the designing or the building, as long as the inspiration is there.