First Meeting of the Year

[penguinfrk]

Recently, my team's been planning out what to do on the first meeting of the school year. While we have been meeting all through the summer, it will be the first meeting at school for a few months.

In the past, we've had a video playing as new members showed up, passed around an informational handout, introduced key leadership, did a 20-minute presentation, and then did a robot demo as members slowly drifted out.

We've found this not to be very effective. I think there are a couple reasons for this.
-Videos are not interactive engagement, it's passive.
-The physical barrier or distance between the new members and the veteran officers who are being introduced and speaking creates a psychological barrier. This makes unity difficult later on.
-People are bored during the presentation. Nobody is there to learn about how our team is organized.

We've set a target retention rate of 80% of new members between the first and second meeting. We've tossed around a couple of ideas for what to do at the first meeting. They've ranged from staging a normal meeting (and engaging new members as if they've been with us for months) to getting in a circle and introducing ourselves, answer icebreaker questions (i.e. favorite color) and explaining why you are in robotics and what you've gotten out of the program.

I was just curious about how other teams kick off meetings after recruitment. Any ideas? Much appreciated!

[Steven Donow]

Personally, I feel like the first meeting(for new members) should just be a simple, short, small informational meeting. You describe what FIRST is, what your team does, how the schedule goes. Collect names, emails, homerooms, etc... Don't make it too intimidating, like, "YOU WILL SPEND 6 WEEKS OF YOUR LIFE BUILDING THIS ROBOT 24/7!!!", but obviously you have to say that there will be some amount of dedication required. That way if people have other things to do that afternoon(ie. sports), they can just be at the meeting for 5-10 minutes, then go. Then for the people who stay you do the robot demo, and maybe touch on the more intensive stuff.

Then the second meeting is when you can start going into the intense stuff, because the people there are more likely gonna be interested in continuing.

[quinxorin]

My recommendation is to keep the mentors and veterans in the first meeting limited to just a few key people - hold a separate meeting for rookies and veterans the first week. That's what my team does. Talk about building a robot - if any parents decide to show up, talk about what students can learn, and how they will be safe. DEFINITELY talk about scholarships and fun. Maybe show a DRAMATIC video to everyone, such as the one FIRST showed at the beginning of each competition in 2010 that made you feel awesome.

p.s. If you can get an 80% retention rate, I would love to know how you do it.

[Walter Deitzler]

This year our school's club fair is on September 13th, and we are busy preping out robot for that. When any new person comes in, we basically ask them what they are interested in, then send them over to that portion of our build room, where we give them a task, such as wiring up the motors or bolting down the chassis. Our veterans stand by and show them how to do it, then watch carefully as they try it out. Not only does it help us with robot preperation, it keeps the rookies occupied and exited. At the end of the meeting is when we give the presentation.

[Karibou]

Each community is different, but our first meeting follows a similar plan, and the rookie retention has been incredible.

Our welcome meeting consists of :
-Introductions of the captains, key mentors, and the sub-team leaders
-FIRST videos (the "Your FIRST..." video and the previous season's game animation)
-A brief message about FIRST and GP
-Team values and a short team history (I'm sure most teams don't go over their history at their first meeting, but it's a huge part of our team image, with is very important to us)
-An explanation of how the team is broken down into groups, and then the leaders from each group give a 30-second explanation of what their group does
-Team commitment during pre-, build, and post- seasons
-An explanation of expenses for each team member, since we "invite"/require parents to come this meeting as well
-Benefits of being on the team
Then we get names and emails, and break to go to the shop for demos and tours, led by veteran students.

Originally Posted by penguinfrk

-People are bored during the presentation. Nobody is there to learn about how our team is organized.

Make a powerpoint. A good powerpoint. With brief statements and pictures. It makes a HUGE difference. Not a lot of people joined the team my sophomore year, and I don't blame them - the presentation wasn't great. Too many pictures, and when there were words, there were paragraphs. Fall 2009 started our problem of "there are way too many rookies, what are we going to do with all of them!?" If you're interested in seeing that powerpoint, PM me your email and I'd be glad to send it along.

[yarden.saa]

My team first meeting with the rookie members is tomorrow .
it is my first year I am a captain so this thread is very helping. thanks!

[evoluti1]

We don't really have a "first meeting," at least not in the sense you're talking about. We will however, be having a parent and new member orientation meeting right after our recruitment deadline. At that meeting, we'll be talking about what FIRST is, what FRC is, what we do, what our goals are, and what our plan is for the rest of the year. We also talk about the time commitment from students and the commitment and help we need from parents. We also show one of FIRST's promo videos to get everyone settled down before we begin. Afterwards, we take everyone into the shop for a robot demonstration, and while that's going on, all of the leadership goes around to learn names and get to know the new members. It's very important to us that our leadership is approachable. We want our members to be unafraid to share their ideas and see becoming a leader on the team as a realistic goal. The friendliness also makes us that much more of a team.

That's pretty much it. We also tell everyone to always wear closed toed shoes and have their hair tied back so they can be sure to be prepared for future meetings.

[smurfgirl]

Something to consider is implementing a buddy/mentor system, where experienced team members are paired up with new members for the first meeting or first few meetings. This helps to establish a personal connection that will make new members feel welcome, and give them a friendly face to ask questions to, and perhaps feel safer than asking questions to a room filled with people. One thing you could do with this is to have the buddy pairs/groups go around to different stations that show the many different things that the robotics team works on, so that new members can get a sense of how diverse the opportunities on the team are (mechanical, electrical, programming, fundraising, community outreach, spirit, publicity etc.).

[penguinfrk]

Interesting. A lot of these suggestions ran counter to my intuition. This is the meeting plan I proposed on our team forums, verbatim:

Proposed plan (open to debate and alteration, of course)
1. Have robots around for people to drive as people walk in the door. Have Gateway game objects and VEX parts on desks, and animation playing in a loop.
2. Seat everyone in a circle, with veteran members spaced every three or so seats.
3. Have everyone introduce their names, answer an icebreaker question (i.e. favorite color), and why they are in robotics. People can choose to pass on the last two questions.
---3a. Have a timekeeper. Responses are limited to 10 seconds each. (Similar to this)
---3b. Start with a sophomore that most of the the new members might know (someone who was at Odle). Make sure they can authentically and truthfully say that they didn't have any experience coming in to this program, but they've gotten a lot out of it after just ~8 months.
---3c. Have a junior and a senior (and preferably diverse compared to the sophomore from 3b) do the same. One of them is ideally quite unknown to the new members, so that the sense of diversity and inclusiveness is felt.
---3d. After first three people have gone (these three should intentionally be planted in adjacent seats in the circle), continue with new members.
---In the case that an astounding 100 members show up, this should take 18 minutes. In the case that, more realistically, 80 members show up, this should take 14 minutes.
4. Show a designated video or two, watch as a group. No more than 10 minutes.
5. Disperse back to robot demos, Gateway prototypes and game pieces, etc.
---5a. Officers approach students who are neither immersed in VEX/robot demos nor chatting among themselves. i.e. students who are looking lost and confused (not necessarily by themselves). Ask them what their interests are, and show them the products of respective branches of the team (i.e. "I'm interested in web design" "Oh, you should take a look at our website then. We have a talented website lead who led us to two back-to-back Website Awards at the Seattle Regional these past years" or "I'm interested in digital art" "Sweet! You can see the elements of some of our graphics team show up in all aspects of the team, like the logo on our shirts to the paint job of our robot!")
6. As new members leave, give them the informational handout.
7. ***No veteran member is allowed until every single new member has left, or 5pm, whichever comes first.

~~~~~~~~~
Justification:
1. Proven to work. Half of the members will be there because they loved operating the arm at the club fair, and are back for more. At SRND, we've successfully immersed three members--Brian Li, Winston, Cameron (discounted Jeremy Sun, because he had exposure from Eric)--previously inexperienced in FIRST within minutes of their arrival at the meeting. This is interactive engagement, whereas watching videos is passive.

2. Mingling. No physical barrier/distance between the veterans and the new members, thereby alleviating a subconscious psychological barrier.

3. We want to get to know them, but we don't want to put them on the spot. They feel included but not pressured. This will accommodate for both the garrulous people (will be willing to share) as well as the shy (will just say their names).

3a. Entertainment value. Those with a lot to say will get their responses cut off, but not in a rude and interrupting fashion because it will be consistent across all members, veteran or new. Eases tension.

3b. The key is to make new members relate to the veteran members. "This could be me" is the effect we're going for. By using personal anecdotes shared by people physically present (as opposed to in a video), the artificiality is reduced. Sure, to veteran members who have experienced FIRST the message of the video might give us goosebumps and resonate very well, but to new members there is the skepticism ("Oh, of course they could find a single student out of the hundreds of thousands of those in this program to do this video.") To see someone you know say this is a totally different thing ("Is this the same person from my LA/SS class when they were still at Odle?")

3c. Emphasis on the diversity of backgrounds and experience levels. Of the three people that introduce themselves first, one of them should be able to say "I already had some experience in engineering/programming/whatever, but I still found areas of growth in this program and expanded my skill sets." However, two should be able to say "I have no prior experience" as to not intimidate those who are new.

3d. Do not create a sense of exclusivity by sticking with veteran members for too long.

4. The video(s) must both generate hype but also give people glimpses of different aspects of the club. Make sure they understand that many different interests are included in robotics, and that "Robotics Club" is actually a misleading name.

5. Include those who are left out, create unity, make them feel valued. Also, again making sure that they feel like there's a place for their interests.

6. It's easy to pick up an info sheet and forget it between the moment they walk in the door and when they leave an hour later. People leave info sheets on desks and chairs all the time. It's harder to forget it when they already have their backpacks on (and can't just stuff it in there and forget about it), have no tables to set them down on, and there are no recycling bins nearby. Also, if they ride the bus, they can read it at the bus stop/after they sit down before putting it in their backpacks; if they get a ride from a parent, mom or dad will see it immediately and ask about it, even if not read it immediately.

7. Do not set the precedent of leaving early, or being indifferent about the new members.

I know it sounds cheesy, but I think before all else it's important it's important to foster the team feeling. Any sort of presentation, in my mind, creates a subconscious schism between presenter and audience. We want new members to be able to relate to team activities from the get go.

I'd like to hear your thoughts on this. Personally, I'm interested in psychology, and I'm not sure if I'm just thinking too much about this.

[Karibou]

Originally Posted by penguinfrk

3. Have everyone introduce their names, answer an icebreaker question (i.e. favorite color), and why they are in robotics.

I'm not sure about this one. Is the purpose of this meeting to get students to join the team? Save the icebreaker for the second meeting - a lot of students are probably at this first one because a) they want to find out more about the team because they're not sure if they're interested enough to join, b) they were dragged along by a friend, or c) they have a very mild interest and were just bored that particular night. Mingling in this way doesn't tell them what the team does, and they will probably feel really awkward when their turn comes around, especially if they don't know why exactly they're there yet, and they may feel like they're expected to know the answer to that question already (if they don't, I doubt they'll come back. Personally, if I was in that situation, I wouldn't either.).


I like number 5 on your list, a lot. Except, once you find out what the student is interested in, take them over to the person in charge of that group. Take the web kid to the web lead.

[Steven Donow]

Originally Posted by Karibou

I'm not sure about this one. Is the purpose of this meeting to get students to join the team? Save the icebreaker for the second meeting - a lot of students are probably at this first one because a) they want to find out more about the team because they're not sure if they're interested enough to join, b) they were dragged along by a friend, or c) they have a very mild interest and were just bored that particular night. Mingling in this way doesn't tell them what the team does, and they will probably feel really awkward when their turn comes around, especially if they don't know why exactly they're there yet, and they may feel like they're expected to know the answer to that question already (if they don't, I doubt they'll come back. Personally, if I was in that situation, I wouldn't either.).

I completely agree with this. If it's a first meeting to get people interested, personally I feel like having the icebreaker stuff just seems like, aggressive and if we're comparing being on a FIRST team to a relationship, it's taking things way too fast.

[penguinfrk]

Originally Posted by Karibou

if they don't know why exactly they're there yet, and they may feel like they're expected to know the answer to that question already (if they don't, I doubt they'll come back. Personally, if I was in that situation, I wouldn't either.)

Originally Posted by stevend1994

If it's a first meeting to get people interested, personally I feel like having the icebreaker stuff just seems like, aggressive

A build officer on our team actually made a point to include the icebreaker question because she felt that going straight into the robotics part of it would be too intimidating, for the reason Kara stated. We've got a little over a week before our first meeting, I'll be sure to bring up concerns about the value of icebreaker questions.

Is the purpose of this meeting to get students to join the team? Save the icebreaker for the second meeting - a lot of students are probably at this first one because a) they want to find out more about the team because they're not sure if they're interested enough to join, b) they were dragged along by a friend, or c) they have a very mild interest and were just bored that particular night.

I had the privilege of hearing Kevin Ross's explanation of new members. With a little added thought, it's along the lines of:

Out of the 24 members on an average team, you have about an 8-8-8 split in the members in three categories.
1) Die hards - no matter what you do they'll be back for more because they've already done some STEM stuff on their own, and know that engineering/programming/etc. is for them.
2) Nerd-curious - in no way a derogatory term, these are the people who are fascinated by what we do, but don't have prior experience. They're far less confident than the die hards, have trouble taking initiative and engaging themselves, and are less comfortable with speaking their thoughts.
3) Hangers-on - they are there not because of any substantial interest in STEM, but because their friends, girlfriend, boyfriend, cousin, etc. is or was on the team.

When it comes to the foundation of the team to be successful at competition, it seems to be the die hards. However, when it comes to inspiration, the nerd-curious and the hangers-on should be the focus.

The way I see it, the first meeting should be to to keep the nerd-curious and hangers-on coming back for more. Get them hooked.

Our recruitment strategy has been extremely passive. At the club fair, we had our robot demo, and we allowed them to operate our arm; for most students and parents, that was enough for them to ask for meeting dates and how to sign up. However, we intentionally did not have a sign-up sheet. The pitch I gave, which was especially effective with parents, is: "We already have 75 members. That's 5% of the school population, and by far the largest club on campus. We don't need new members. We don't have a signup sheet and we don't want one. We don't want students who we have to push and urge and remind to attend our meetings. You don't need prior experience to be on the team, but you need passion. You will get the experience you want to get out of this program."

As far as information goes, I think an informational flyer and the videos we show should be enough. Yes, gracious professionalism and inspiring students to pursue STEM is a phenomenally important aspect of the program, but until you've personally gone through that transformation, you can't quite understand the value of it. Nobody joins the team thinking "I want to be inspired to pursue STEM careers." That stuff can come later, maybe the 2nd or 3rd meeting, and gradually. If you build enough anticipation for team activities, they will read the flyer and get the information they need to know whether the team is for them.



At the same time, I have a voice in the back of my head second-guessing my rationale, wondering if this is all too idealistic and radically different and if I'm overthinking things. Thanks for putting up with these long posts, and I'd love to hear more thoughts.

[quinxorin]

Don't do icebreakers or anything else that is little-kiddish. It makes people not want to be on the team because they feel they will be treated like, well, little kids. I am very glad that when I was a rookie I missed my team's icebreakers meeting, because if I hadn't I would have quit. I won't allow myself to be treated like a little kid.

[Ankit S.]

Something I haven't heard of so far(don't hold me to that, I skimmed through), is having the members split up into groups and complete a challenge with abstract materials.

For example, we hold something called a "box challenge". The challenge works like this:
The students break into groups of 5-6, and each group is given identical amounts and types of materials. The groups are then instructed to build something to complete a challenge (tallest tower, bridge that can hold weight).
This gets the adrenaline pumping and allows the students to remember their first meeting better.
However, we do not use our first meeting to find new recruits, we use it to hook them in; we use school orientations to find new members and tell them about this meeting and others.

[penguinfrk]

Originally Posted by quinxorin

p.s. If you can get an 80% retention rate, I would love to know how you do it.

Today was our team's second meeting. We had 75 members at the first meeting, and 71 members at the second for a 94.66% retention rate. Hopefully this keeps up.

Some observations on what works and what doesn't work:
Does work:

• Have activities requiring input from both veteran members and new members, but making sure veteran members lead off.
• Background visual engagement: we had about 15 miscellaneous robots, some team-made and some from mentors' collections, and placed them in a very noticeable place. We promised to demo them, but not until the end. Anticipation retains attention.
• Officers introducing themselves without their given title to alleviate intimidation and any sort of psychological barrier. Emphasize the team feeling, not a hierarchy. Titles can come later.
• Introduce mentors on a first-name basis (our only exception was our faculty contact, whom many of the members have as a teacher)
• Veteran member modesty and humor.
• If anyone has a fantastic short-term memory, being able to refer to the members by name after they introduce themselves.

Doesn't work:

• Cheesy activity names. For instance: "Meet the mentors!"
• Any one person talking for more than some 30 seconds at a time..
• Inside jokes and veteran member side conversations.

I'm not sure if we were just really lucky or if our methodology was actually effective. I know that the same first meeting structure will be used at a rookie team in the area, so if I hear anything about how that goes I'll be sure to post here.