[FRC Blog] Mentor Monday - December 1, 2014

[plnyyanks]

Great post Ellen! Team 1124 and NEFIRST are lucky to have someone like you helping them out.

[HelloRobot]

I just feel so inspired by that post. I'm probably not the only girl who sees a role model in Ms. McIsaac. I can relate to at least the first part of her story. When I started out as a freshmen in FIRST, it was difficult. I was the only girl on my team (aside from two teachers and one mentor). Back then, my school didn't have a team, so I only knew two teammates at first. I think the guys (especially the older ones who had been teammates for a while) had trouble connecting with me. Plus, I had been picked on in middle school (by guys because of crushes. Just, ugh.), and I tried not to be noticed during at least the first half of 9th grade. It was almost like I had to somehow prove myself, but I didn't have any of the mechanical and electrical skills that the guys all seemed to know. Then, at one of our competitions, the lead teacher advisor pulled me aside and told me that she saw me struggling to find my spot on the team. She told me that it is, or at least, it has been, difficult for girls to stand out in STEM fields. Even she had trouble in college because not a lot of girls were into engineering.

After that I wasn't as shy. The next year, three more girls joined the team, so that made things a bit better. Either way, I wasn't going to quit. And I ended up feeling like I had contributed more, and one of the new girls became one of my best friends.

This is my third year in FRC, and I am now leading my school's new rookie team! It makes me so happy to see younger female teammates getting involved in FRC. One of our freshmen even helped us get a huge sponsor! I'm very excited about this season, even though I still have a lot to learn. As it turns out, I've learned a lot about how to best manage the team, and I fit in well leading the business side of the team. I had no idea that I would have this position in 9th grade.

Thank you, Ms. McIsaac, and all the mentors who want us ladies to keep trying until we succeed.