[Kevin Sevcik]

I'll get the person who's good with money on our team to talk about that bit later. To address the last issue first, you just really need to hunt in your school for a teacher or staff member that's actually interested in the program. That's really the only way you'll get them to come and be interested, and that's the only guarantee you have that they'll stay. On the other hand, there's no rule that a team HAS to be school sponsored. I recall atleast one team that was sponsored by a community instead and had no school support either, so your team could move in that direction. It would make it a pain to miss classes for competitions, but it's an option.

I can't explain all the details on the money issue, but I do know that we had a similar problem at our school. I believe the answer was for our team to set itself up as a 501(c3) tax-exempt organization. I'm certain this was a painful process, as anything IRS related would be. At any rate, once you have the organization set up, you collect donations and sponsorships for it and your team specifically, and put it in a team bank account, and the school can't say anything about the money.

If you find an enthused teacher sponsor and get the money squared away properly, and the school school is actually threatening to shut down your team for some odd reason, I think your best bet is to bring parents up to the school to complain to the principal. Point out that robotics students are smart and dedicated, and losing them to another school would hurt your current school. Calling someone higher up in the chain of command than the principal could also be productive. A cadre of parents bugging the school board could be helpful.

Also, I think schools have to allow you to set up a club if you have a teacher sponsor and enough people interested. Something about equality and such, but you should ask a legal expert in your area about that one.

So there you are. If you're interested in the 501(c3) thing, PM me and I'll hook you up with our resident financial wizard and she should be able to explain the process.