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Unread 03-12-2010, 20:21
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Ivan Helmrich Ivan Helmrich is offline
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FRC #1775 (Tigerbytes)
Team Role: Mentor
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Rookie Year: 2006
Location: Kansas City, MO
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Re: What Does "Our Team Really Needs Funding" Mean To You?

Good topic.

I don't usually think in terms of Haves and Have Nots, more like Haves and Have Mores. If students are getting the chance to participate in FRC, they are doing pretty well compared to most students. But, thinking in terms of Haves and Have Nots, the thing that makes the most difference in my view is not the money. It has a lot more to do with support for the team.

It's really hard to have a good team experience if the team does not have support from the school, parents, engineering mentors, and other mentors. A good mentor, whether an engineering mentor or non-engineer, is worth way more than a $5000 grant to cover an entry fee. So is being based in a school (or other organization) that has a real interest in having a team. I'd be happy to trade a couple thousand budget dollars for a group of parents who show up and feed the team, help organise fundraising, transport kids to outreach functions, etc. If your team has this kind of support, it is a lot easier to put forward the effort to do the things that will make your team a Have.

Ivan
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“The knowledge of what is relevant, what is not and the skill to cleverly work around or approximate solutions is the essence of engineering.” - James C. King
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