[bachster]

One consideration I don't see mentioned much in these discussions is the value of the competition experience for the whole team, not just the drive team. All the team members who designed, built, programmed, marketed, videotaped, fundraised, scouted, etc. have a vested interest in seeing the fruits of their labor meet their full potential. Choice of drive team members, including coach, may have a huge impact on ensuring that the strategy chosen by the team is executed, that the scouting data is utilized, and that the robot performs to its technical capabilities during match play.

Imagine being a programmer who spent 6 weeks of her life perfecting autonomous code only to watch helplessly from the stands while the robot crashes into the wall because the drive team failed to set it up properly. Or being a scout who has been running around all weekend gathering data and analyzing alliance and opponent capabilities, only to watch that analysis become meaningless when a coach doesn’t assert him- or herself to execute the best strategy.

Depending on the team, having a mentor in the drive coach role may be the best way to provide the most students the inspiration that comes from seeing your “baby” succeed, in whatever way you define success.

To comment specifically on the (unfortunately commonly cited) concerns that an adult coach can be intimidating and overbearing to alliance members: I would sincerely hope that any mentors in the drive coach role would consider themselves mentors to all students in FIRST, not just those with the same team number. Whether it’s introducing new ways of thinking about strategy, modeling professional communication, or just staying grounded during tense situations, this can be a good opportunity for students on other teams to benefit from another type of mentoring relationship than what they normally experience. A drive coach who strays from Gracious Professional behavior, whether student or adult, may need to be reminded of FIRST’s priorities by his or her own teammates/mentors, the formal complaint system, a one on one conversation with the affected party, or whatever other mechanism is appropriate. It is difficult to change culture with rules – if mentor coaches were outlawed, the net effect could very well be that by trying to eliminate a few instances of negative experience, even more opportunities for positive experience are also eliminated.

For those long-standing mentor coaches: are you doing what you can to mentor all students you come into contact with? I hope that by getting a chance to interact with you, my students - both those on the drive team and those watching their robot execute a strategy alongside yours – are inspired by the experience.