Quote:
Q:This year, 23,000 high school students participated in the FIRST competition. Is FIRST meeting your expectations?
The event always exceeds my expectations, but I am saddened by the relatively low number of students participating. While everyone is astounded by our growth—we’re finally in a major national sports arena—I assumed that we would have gotten here in the first or second year. Our growth may be envied but it’s never fast enough for me.
Q: When will you consider FIRST to be really successful?
Five years from today, I want every kid in every high school in the United States to know that their high school has a football team, a marching band, and a FIRST team—it’s a given, its part of the school’s culture.
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As we start to dissect Dean's quote, there is one important factor that I want to make sure is remembered. On a regular basis, FIRST and Dean are quick to point out that
FIRST is not just the FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC). FIRST is about inspiration, cultural transformation, mentorship, celebration of creativity, and recognition of innovation. Those goals are not limited to just one part of their program, or just the FRC. When Dean speaks of having a FIRST team in every high school in the country, he is not necessarily saying that every high school will have a FRC team - he is saying that every high school will make some element of the FIRST experience available to their students. He is saying that he wants every student exposed to that message of inspiration, cultural transformation, mentorship, celebration of creativity, and recognition of innovation. It may be done through a FRC team. But it may also be a FLL Mentoring program, or perhaps a FIRST VEX team (let's see where that one goes), or an implmentation of other parts of the FIRST program that are currently in the development pipeline from Manchester.
In other words, there is not a complete one-to-one relationship between FIRST and FRC. Helping FIRST grow does not necessarily have to mean helping FRC grow. It could mean helping FLL, VEX, or a future to-be-announced part of FIRST. And if that is the case, then is it necessary - or is it even appropriate - to ask FRC teams to foot the bill for that growth?
-dave