[JaneYoung]

Part of being a member of a FIRST team is maintaining our responsibilities and commitments. Students have responsibilities to their other classes, to doing their homework, to maintaining their academic grades. The mentors have the responsibility of their jobs and maintaining their level of production and efficiency, all the while participating in FIRST.

That is real world.

Inspiration and recognition of science and technology is not something that takes the place of your education for 6 weeks or 12 weeks or ever. Not on a high school level, not on a college level. It takes place along side it.

Teams who have developed systems that support the students participating in the build and competition season, realize that the balance is difficult. There are only so many hours in a day. There are only so many directions a person can move in at one time. The tutoring and the fact that students know going in that there are expectations regarding their responsibilities to their classes and grades help the individual and the team in the short term and in the long term. FIRST teams come from all sorts of backgrounds and environs. School systems aren't the same across the board and don't provide the same level of support across the board. Wise leaders develop ways to help students succeed in both the short term and the long term, the long term being a successful college career and obtaining employment in their chosen fields of science, technology, and others.