[jason701802]

I'm in a very similar situation to davepowers, my dad became a mentor when our team was founded (I was in 2nd grade) and I went to almost every meeting. I became known as 'Junior', a name that lasted through 9th grade. I became a lot more involved in 7th grade when I wired most of the robot and I became Head Electrician in 8th grade. I was also on an FLL team (that my parents founded) from 3rd through 8th grade.
There is no reason that the 9th graders shouldn't able to be a part of the FRC team. I can understand where difficulties might arise if the 9th graders are in middle school and the middle school is not close to the high school. I don't believe anything should be done to keep 9th graders (or younger) off the team if they want to be a part of it.