In an attempt to contribute something to this thread that is both productive and informative, I’d like to share my thoughts as a female in FRC. I’ve been involved in FIRST since the tail-end of the 2009 season as a student, and the last four years as a mentor in CAD and manufacturing.
I was fortunate that the team I was on in high school was very welcoming and was not overly biased, but that didn’t make it perfect. Many of the issues I felt I faced were subtle and now many years later, I believe were possibly unintentional by my teammates. At the time, I would not have labeled as any kind of sexism, but also felt as if there was a “boy’s club” mentality that I was not a part of.
This is why these panel discussions are so important. No one intended to cause me harm, but now that I’m older (and hopefully wiser), I realize that those kind of actions are the most harmful. When neither side knows what has transpired, neither side can open a dialogue to fix the issue.
I always felt that I had to speak with great conviction to be listened to on my team, especially in the beginning. Over time, I did gain more respect of my peers, but sticking it out in the beginning was difficult. Naturally, I am a very patient and stubborn person and that enabled me to see it through. I also found support in one of the college mentors of our team. He was the first person on the team I felt took me seriously, and I will always be grateful.
Now as a mentor myself, I often stop and wonder if I’m doing enough for my students. (I’m sure we all do). But in context of this discussion, I worry about the girls whose skin might not be as thick or don’t know why they perceive this odd “feeling” about being on the team, as I had. As was stated earlier in this thread:
Quote:
Originally Posted by teku14
<snip> ... the real problem seems to be that women are more likely to give up at a given field after an attrition event, than men.
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As a mentor, I’ve seen many girls come onto our team, and I’ve seen many disappear. I always am asking myself
am I doing enough? Sure I can get girls interested in the team, but getting them to stick it out is hard.
1646’s two student drivers this year were female and I was drive coach. Midway through the season I belatedly realized our team had created a drive team that was 75% female. Did this inspire any of the other girls on the team? Do they want to be drivers too? How can I inspire more students on the team (
all students) to be this involved?
Events like the IndyRAGE are a crucial step in this process, but we can’t let it end there. Letting the girls know they
can be heavily involved in a FRC team is only part of the process. Empowering them to continue to do so once they leave the event is something we need to focus on.
Parting thoughts: How can we give girls the resources to succeed on FRC teams and in STEM? What can we do to aid them when faced with actions and behaviors of others that are unintentional but harmful? How should we approach any individual who exhibits behaviors that are potentially harmful to others on the basis of gender?
What can we do to make events like IndyRAGE even
better for
everyone?