[Beth Sweet]

Originally Posted by Andrew Blair

Mmm, I don't know. Alot of the girls we have had on our team recently are the stereotypical girl, where getting her hands dirty is an unforgivable sin. Now don't get me wrong, we have had some girls do wonders in the machine shop, and they are strongly encouraged, perhaps bcause they are so rare. But alot of initial "stereotyping" is done because so many girls are afraid to get their hands dirty. I guess thats where FIRST comes in too. It gives them a chance to learn otherwise remote mechanical skills, and if they choose not to learn then they have other opportunities: Chairmans, animation, and our teams personal favorite, flirting with boys at competitions. (ahh! don't lynch me! Some girls) .

Andrew,

I don't think that Neha is saying that there is a problem with the girls who want to be on Chairmans, Animation (I'm ignoring the other comment) being there, but rather the ones with interest in engineering being forced to participate in the aforestated groups and not allowed to participate in engineering because of their lack of the ever coveted Y chromosome.

Neha, yes, it's a problem. That is a big reason that, especially the MI chapter of, the RCU is around. Girls who are not being allowed to do such things can go there to talk and try to learn the skills that some aren't being taught on their teams so that they can be just as competant as their male counterparts. It is support and it is education. It's a safe place, basically. The best way that I know of to deal with a situation where you are being judged as inferior is to prove your competency. CD, RCU and mentors, even from other teams, can all prove valuable resources in this sort of unacceptable situation.

And for the record, if any girls are in this position on their teams and just want to vent, my screen name on AIM is spartychica08. While I can provide little to no technical insight, I can probably at least get you in contact with someone that can help out.