Quote:
Originally Posted by PayneTrain
Does anyone mind sharing Minnesota's big secret to success? They are a middling state for population but off the top of my head I believe they are only behind California, Michigan, and Texas on team count.
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Actually, we're ahead of Texas... they're only at 142 teams
A large part of the reason we're doing so well is all the sponsors we have locally. There are a huge number of companies headquartered here, like Target, 3M, Best Buy, etc. We also have three of the largest medical device companies within a 5 mile radius, and well over 100 other medical products companies in the cities. Sponsorship from so many great companies certainly helps.
We also do everything we can to make sure teams return every year. If I counted correctly, we lost only 1 team this year, and they merged with another one. We have a great volunteer dedicated to finding teams money when they really need it... if you earn a spot at champs, he usually has found you some money (often from your primary sponsor) before you've left the building!
Also, we have great students, like
this Dean's List Finalist from my team this year! She single-handedly got funding for our team and three others from a new-to-FIRST sponsor last year!