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Unread 19-10-2007, 16:03
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KathieK KathieK is offline
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Re: Worcester FIRST event?

I received the following e-mail this afternoon from FIRST, addressed to the FIRST Tech Challenge Affiliate Partners, and am sharing it with their permission to the Chief Delphi Community. I hope that this clarifies some of the issues brought forward in this thread so we can put this to rest:

Quote:
Hello AP’s,

It is with great sadness that I send this letter. A few of you have
raised concerns about information posted to ChiefDelphi concerning the
FTC Affiliate Partnership in Massachusetts. While some of you are
already aware of this information, I’d like to make sure that you are
receiving your information directly from FIRST on this matter.

1. As all of you are well aware, FIRST cannot cancel an Affiliate
Partnership without legal ramifications, and this certainly was not the
case with Massachusetts. (This is one of our clauses in place to help
serve you as an Affiliate Partner.) Please see the language below:

“Either party has the right to terminate this Agreement if the other
party materially breaches its obligations under this Agreement unless
the breaching party cures such breach within 30 days after receiving
written notice…Either party has the right to terminate the Agreement on
ninety (90) days’ written notice to the other party.”

2. Quinsigamond Community College, Brad Lauer, nor Betty Lauer has ever
signed an Affiliate Partner Agreement with FIRST. The 2006 AP was a
VISTA volunteer for Massachusetts and not employed by QCC. The volunteer
left his post immediately following last year’s Massachusetts FTC
Championship Tournament, and the Agreement was terminated at that time
with consent from FIRST. As a courtesy, we kept Brad Lauer on our
email lists as he was still serving as Regional Director for
Massachusetts at that time. The AP Agreement could not simply be
transferred to QCC, as per language in the agreement.

3. The first we were aware of QCC planning to have a tournament for 2007
was through another AP’s comment at our Partner Training. Prior to this,
FIRST had not been contacted of QCC’s intention to become an Affiliate
Partner, nor was FIRST aware that they would like to become to the AP.
I know definitively that Steve Chism has never spoken with Betty Lauer
on the phone regarding this matter.

4. With the departure of the previous Affiliate Partner, FIRST began
seeking a new AP for the MA/Northern New England area, and there were a
number of candidates we evaluated. The current MA Affiliate Partner was
chosen out of these representatives as being best able to serve the FTC
program, and had already been given first right of refusal for the
partnership for the area before QCC expressed their interest and
intention to the FIRST staff responsible for selecting the APs.

5. The Massachusetts Affiliate Partnership for FTC has been filled, and
teams in the area will have an official event in which to compete. We
have been lucky to find someone to take on this challenging and daunting
task. I ask you all to help me welcome Eric Duda to our program, as we
are happy to have him on board for this season.

All of you are fully aware that the Affiliate Partnership is a difficult
and (most of the time) thankless position. It is something you have
taken on with the sole intent of inspiring today’s youth and tomorrow’s
future. I have been lucky enough to work with you for a year and a half,
and have placed my judgment and faith in you to run this fledgling
program. Considering our growth for 2006 and this year (over 800 teams
so far!), your dedication to this program’s mission has been phenomenal.
I cannot thank you enough for your personal sacrifice, and am sorry to
see issues such as this overshadow it.

Respectfully,
Amanda
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