Quote:
Originally Posted by JaneYoung
Would it have anything to do with the difference between an organization and a business?
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I certainly hope not. The primary consideration should be finding the most efficient use of the tax dollars - most bang for the buck. If a business is providing a cheaper alternative than an organization, I see no reason why it should not be considered. Also, while FIRST itself may be non-profit, it is certainly tied closely to many for-profit businesses, and indeed many of FIRST's decisions lately seem to be driven by the interests of those companies rather than what is best for the teams.
Anyway, to be more on-topic, I'll go to this: the Chicago area tried a very similar experiment over the last few years, with After School Matters funding the registration fees for a bunch of new teams. The result has basically been what John is worried about - many (most?) of these teams show up at the regional not ready to compete, not very interested, and definitely not sustainable. They mostly disappear after a year or two. As I understand it, they've basically given up on this program because of these problems and will be using the funding in different ways this year, focusing on more fully funding a smaller number of teams that are more sustainable.