[EricH]

Originally Posted by Rangel(kf7fdb)

The other mentor would probably be very surprised and would know it was done without him even knowing about it.

And why should the mentors know who was submitted at all? At least, until after the season, or they are announced as the winner. All they need to know is that a submission went in. (If that, mind you.)

Back when I was a student, the students would have a meeting with maybe one mentor present (usually not an engineering mentor, BTW), pick which mentor we would nominate, and nominate them. The only adult who knew which mentor generally functioned as a proofreader, and was NEVER the nominated mentor.


To answer the original question, to the best of my knowledge, no award can be submitted anonymously. If nothing else, FIRST will be able to trace the STIMS account it went in from--there's enough of a paper trail to be able to find the team number, as I understand it--and it's generally accepted as best practice to make sure it's clear.


To add another element into the mix: Why are you so sure that the long-time mentor's feelings will be hurt? Besides the whole "we've submitted him for a long time" aspect, I would find it reasonable to expect that he's not exactly in this for the recognition, and thus wouldn't mind too terribly if you took a break from nominating him to nominate someone else. (If he is, there's nothing like the students feeding the mentors to heal feelings...)