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Originally Posted by Chris Fultz
I am ALL FOR screening - it should be required by evey school that has their name on a team, and every corporation that sponsors them. As an adult leader and volunteer I am also not a bit 'offended' by the requirement and would be concerned about those who oppose it.
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Chris, I think that you might be missing the point behind the protest.
I agree that all teams should screen their mentors. Schools should do it. Companies should do it. Protecting children should be top priority.
However...
Most people's objections to this are with HOW the program was being implemented, not the idea behind it.
In my opinion...
FIRST should not be the ones screening our teams' mentors. This is our job as team leaders. FIRST should stick to creating a great game and kit for us to play with. They should stick to hosting exciting events. Why should there be an added level of bureacracy at FIRST to perform searches and pass judgement on people they don't even know? Do they think that we are not capable of doing this ourselves?
Hypothetically, if there is a mentor on my team with some questionable offenses, it is up to the administrators of my team to determine if that person should be a mentor or not... not FIRST.
I applaud FIRST for being concerned about this issue. They should continue with the program and PROMOTE screening and assist teams by directing them how to screen their mentors. They can cite examples and provide guidelines.. but not require that teams do it by their canned method.
Andy B.