The Struggles of Bigger Teams

[KrazyCarl92]

The challenges of running a large team like this are making sure all of the students are engaged and all of them feel valued. One way to help achieve this goal is to get your team involved in many of the competitions or awards within FRC that have little to nothing to do with the robot. The Chairman's Award submission, the animation competition, and other awards like spirit and safety are all good goals to work toward that can help engage more kids. It may also encourage people who don't necessarily have strong technical skills to get involved with the team.

Many times another hurdle experienced at one time or another, which isn't by any means exclusive to larger teams, is disgruntled parents. This usually results from a misconception or miscommunication about what FIRST is and how your organization works. It helps to keep parents involved with the team, whether it be by mentoring, bringing in food on the weekends for build season, occasionally attending meetings, or going to competitions. I'm adding this here simply because more students = more parents and that increases the chances someone might be upset at some point in the season.