Quote:
Originally Posted by Kimmeh
Communication as also been an issue on the team for as long as I can remember and we've yet to find a way to over come it. I've spent the last few hours looking though team handbooks, and am compiling a list of what I'd like ours to cover. I know many of the mentors would be willing to work on this, but I worry about the willingness of the students. I think they some of them fail to see that the team is for them and they should take the opportunity to speak up so that the team is run the way they want it.
I love FIRST and all that it has to offer. It opens up so many more doors than the average high school activity, and it's something you can continue to do after high school. That is why I want to resolve this.
|
Kimberly, give Chelsea a call. It really sounds like what you need to do is set up a student governance committee, as others have said. Here's another point: your roles and responsibilities should be laid out at the start of the year, and students should be heading each group and making decisions, with the INPUT of the mentors, but not the dictatorship of the mentors.
Without a set process in place before these types of conflicts occur, it's very difficult to reach a amicable and fair resolution because everyone ends up having a conflict of interest.
Lacking a set process, you should have a 'Head Mentor' whose responsibility it is to solve disputes. In the absence of THAT, or should the Head Mentor be the one causing the issues, you really need to have that governance board to fall back on to help resolve the issue.
Checks and balances, with student leadership and responsibility. It's the key to a team running well. Without it, it's all emotion and that never ends up in a good place.
Lastly, I'd like to say that all of this is easy to say, but very very hard to do. It took a very dedicated group of our students to get together and do it after 5 years, and if you asked them every one would say that our bylaws already need changes. You need a group of people who believe it's the right way to do things, and they need the drive to get it done. Think 1776 (the year, not the team).