question for teams created among multiple high schools

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Posted by P.J. Baker at 04/30/2001 4:13 PM EST


Engineer on team #177, Bobcat Robotics, from South Windsor High School and International Fuel Cells.


In Reply to: "Life is Suffering"
Posted by Joe Johnson on 04/30/2001 9:22 AM EST:



Joe,

Try this one the next time someone at Delphi asks you for a project plan:

"Our plan is to have no plan. Flexibility is key. In that one thing, we are rigid"

- Tom Paterno, my best friend and distant relative (so he claims) of Joe Pa

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Posted by Jessica Boucher at 05/01/2001 8:28 AM EST


Student on team #237, Sie-H2O-Bots, from Watertown High School and Eastern Awning Systems & The Siemon Company.


In Reply to: "Life is Suffering"
Posted by Joe Johnson on 04/30/2001 9:22 AM EST:



"Peace is not an absence of war, it is a virtue, a state of mind, a disposition for benevolence, confidence, justice."

-Baruch Spinoza


Just pondering on this fine morning....

-Jessica B, #237

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Posted by Ken Patton at 04/29/2001 10:47 PM EST


Engineer on team #65, The Huskie Brigade, from Pontiac Northern High School and GM Powertrain.


In Reply to: question for teams created among multiple high schools
Posted by Scott England on 04/29/2001 2:44 AM EST:



We have for the last five years sponsored one school, so I am somewhat off topic for your question. But, our solution would work for a multiple-school team, I think.

Our engineering team (all the engineers, roughly one half of the students) meets at GM Powertrain during the season. Since all of the work on the robot is done there, it makes it easier on everyone to be close to our shop. We have a room that is about 12 ft by 12 ft, plus a playing field in an open area in the building. We do not always have enough room, but we do have *some* room. The students spend a minimum of 14 hours per week there, but that grows as the ship deadline gets closer. There is always engineer supervision.

We have weekly "all-team" meetings at GM Powertrain also - I personally think it puts everyone on good behavior, since we are in a place of business. Not that we behave badly....)

The non-engineering team tends to work at the school, but its pretty common to find a couple of the students working late at one of the engineers' desks at Powertrain - they can stay there later.

Hope this helps,
Ken

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Posted by soap108 at 04/29/2001 11:29 PM EST


Engineer on team #108, SigmaC@T, from Dillard & Taravella HS and Motorola.


In Reply to: question for teams created among multiple high schools
Posted by Scott England on 04/29/2001 2:44 AM EST:



108:
Motorola is centrally located, 20 min due south of Taravella HS and 20 min due west of Dillard HS. All team meetings there. Sometimes Marketing, PM, and SOAP meet off-site. Its easier for us to not be behind a firewall. Animation meets on Saturday, but they don't stay long. Most of that work gets done at DHS or a student's house.

~All robot fabrication done onsite...large machine shop. There's too much liability stuff with Mot allowing students to operate most machinery, but they do get to assemble the bot and work on it in the Pit. We've been very fortunate to get factory floor space (~30'x40') for the playing field each year. 3 major sectors of Mot have manufacturing lines and it always happened that one of the factories has some temp space that we can use from Jan-April. Each year we talk to the respective GM's about permanent space year-round but no dice...yet.

Students from the two schools get along very well, although they usually don't hang out together beyond the events. The teachers work well tegether too. One even "interned" at motorola last summer and should be back again in June. Each year anywhere from 3-7 students will land internships largely due to their performance on the team (in 1997 about 15 made it in!). I believe each of the Val's from DHS since 97 have interned upon graduation. This year the Sal interned during his Sr year (OJT) and the Val was on the team last year.

Broward's school board is well aware of our partnership and supports us to a degree. The schools' principals and other staff members go to Nationals and like to here reports from our regional affairs.

Some bugs this year were in travel and hotel. The schools booked seperately and some confusion arose. Just one those miscommunications most teams have anyway. But to their credit the schools do video conference each other during Oct-Dec timeframe to do some planning for the upcoming season. In the past DHS and Motorola tried out the video conferencing and that went okay, but its better to have the kids and teachers in person.

Hope this helps,
KA ;~)

: ok all, we're evaluating how our team should be structured next year, and I have my opinion on this subject, but I'm honestly really curious how other teams deal with it.

: For all the teams out there, that have students from several high schools, I'm wondering where the team is physically based (like where meetings occur, and the robot is built). If at one of the multiple high schools involved, or at a seperate shop/space provided by a sponsor or university, or anywhere else I can't imagine. Thanks, there's lots of evaluating left to do trying to figure out how to become one of the big name teams (Chief Delphi, HOT, Huski-Brigade, Buzz, etc the teams that you recognize just from a short name) that really seem to have their ducks in a row.

[archiver]

Posted by Carolyn Duncan at 04/30/2001 7:45 AM EST


Student on team #495, The Pack, from Jamestown High School and VBEP/Raytheon/Saic.


In Reply to: question for teams created among multiple high schools
Posted by Scott England on 04/29/2001 2:44 AM EST:



Hey Scott,
Team 495 started the season as a 2 school team. We had all the meetings at Jamestown because that was the school with the original school sponsor, we have to have an adult from the school to have an activity. By the middle of the season we were down to one school, not very many of us as you know.
C-ya,
Carolyn

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Posted by Lewis Sussman at 04/30/2001 12:32 PM EST


Coach on team #95, Lebanon Robotics Team, from Lebanon NH HS, Hanover NH HS, Hartford VT HS and CRREL/CREARE.


In Reply to: question for teams created among multiple high schools
Posted by Scott England on 04/29/2001 2:44 AM EST:



In a rural area, it's a necessity. We meet in a workshop provided by a sponsor, also in a classroom at one of the schools. We have worked hard to eliminate cliques and overcome rivalry, and we are proud to say it's hard to tell where the students come from by looking at the way they interact. We are not an "official" school activty. We get some administrative support from one of the schools, but are an independent "club" with our own board of directors, including some students. I feel that a multi school team is very feasible and would encourage you.

BTW, we have experienced some of the same puzzling lack of public support mentioned by Bill Beatty. Only one science teacher (who is very involved) out of three schools seems to take any real interest in what we are doing. We're working on it.