College student mentors

[Barry Bonzack]

I am a college student. This is my 4th year mentoring robotics teams. That includes FLL, FTC, and FRC. There is no "one size fits all" judgment on this conversation, and this is not a topic that should be approached as such. First and foremost, it is up to the team to decide the policy, and it should be a case by case basis. Some college students are mentor material, some are not. Some can budget their time well during build season and make good grades while doing so, some can not. Some can be the head mentor of the team, and lead a successful season, some may just need to show up when they are available.

This thread talks much deeper into the subject, and I advise further conversation be directed here.

Truly, this boils down to is the college student able to be a leader and a role model? Can he or she inspire while teaching FIRST values and gracious professionalism? Here is a whitepaper called "A Mentor Is..." It is up to the team to decide if the mentor to be meets the criteria.

[kramarczyk]

Opinions on this site may be misleading regarding official information; go to the source. If someone thinks that this is a FIRST rule then they should able to find it written down somewhere, just like a game rule. A good place to start would be to contact the FIRST Senior Mentor from your area to help find the official requirements. From PA it is Jessica Jankowitsch jjankowitsch@usfirst.org or jessjank. on these fora.

<opinion>The only official documentation I've been able to find is http://www.usfirst.org/community/vol....aspx?id=11576 which suggests to me that FIRST considers the issue of who qualifies as a mentor to be a team issue. </opinion>

If there is a team rule then it too should be documented somewhere. <insert plug for team handbooks>

[JaneYoung]

Mark's post is an excellent one. Developing and implementing the use of a team handbook is very important to the on-going organizational consistency and development of a team. Also, knowing who to contact directly for correct and official answers to your FRC questions helps the team develop successfully.

I would encourage you to look at this from the teacher's perspective, through the lens of wisdom. Asking the current teacher/sponsor for a private meeting to discuss the graduating student returning as a mentor in 2010, would help clear up any misunderstandings regarding the topic of pending/recent graduates and mentoring, and perhaps other areas of teamwork that may be a little muddled.

It is rare that teachers are the bad guys, and although they can be tough for sure, they usually have the team's and the student's best interests at heart. Good communication and knowledge of the rules are effective skills that every team/team member should work on, and keep working on, in every aspect of team development.

Originally Posted by kramarczyk

Opinions on this site may be misleading regarding official information; go to the source. If someone thinks that this is a FIRST rule then they should able to find it written down somewhere, just like a game rule. A good place to start would be to contact the FIRST Senior Mentor from your area to help find the official requirements. From PA it is Jessica Jankowitsch jjankowitsch@usfirst.org or jessjank. on these fora.

<opinion>The only official documentation I've been able to find is http://www.usfirst.org/community/vol....aspx?id=11576 which suggests to me that FIRST considers the issue of who qualifies as a mentor to be a team issue. </opinion>

If there is a team rule then it too should be documented somewhere. <insert plug for team handbooks>