Volunteering at an event you have a team at?

[cglrcng]

The Ref portion isn't in me, but have only so far volunteered at events my team was present and competing in a few times in the machine shop. Then last year signed up to just tend the practice field in Las Vegas (often help assemble and disassemble the field also).

Well, we arrived last year (my eldest Son was FTAA so we arrived together), and set up the field Wednesday night. Thursday morning I was helping set up the practice field elements, get the sign up sheets ready, and that lasted a whole 5 minutes...Then I was collared & elevated to Field Supervisor. Given a crew, lucky I knew the game. Most of the crew didn't, but we met, gave them a quick rundown, and we went at it. (I do fairly well supervising people, so it was a good fit).

Being that close to the field gives anyone a new appreciation for the game, the FTA and FTAA, and all the others that make the show go on, and allow it to go live, then you are in it up to your neck.

While you never forget your team, there are not problems w/ the element of conflict of interests...You are flat too busy for any of that stuff (and there are plenty of others around to check any actions that would lean that way). You do your job, and do not ever play favorites either.

The game required all outbound balls to get returned very quickly back to the closest HP of that color alliance, and it doesn't matter what team that was, or whether my team was playing against them or not, they were returned to each alliance as quickly and safely as humanly possible. (Half the time, I didn't really notice my team was even on the field until the match was over...I was just too busy! And the rest of the time my team in the stands were sitting right behind me, so we communicated often).

You pay attention to your job (but you must understand when wearing that FIRST Volunteer shirt, you personally & directly represent FIRST, and you do the best job for FIRST as an organization, that you can in performing that job....Period.

I personally enjoy the volunteer duties tremendously no matter where I am put (in any organization), but I really enjoyed that position the most so far. I was closer to most of the action than the students behind the glass. Though not the Refs or HP's.

And for a near sighted guy...It was perfect. It was a job, I was pretty sore for a week as it was also a real workout, and the nights were a lot shorter than normal, as it was virtually non-stop Wednesday afternoon, until late Saturday night when the truck pulled away w/ the field.

In the future I want to try one when not with the team also. It is fairly hard not cheering outright for the students you directly mentor...LOL. (At least I tried not to personally). So, I just cheer for them all.

[ToddF]

Originally Posted by cglrcng

While you never forget your team, there are not problems w/ the element of conflict of interests...You are flat too busy for any of that stuff (and there are plenty of others around to check any actions that would lean that way). You do your job, and do not ever play favorites either.

How I wish this were true. Some teams seem to use their team member volunteers to gain advantage over others. One of the most egregious examples of this I witnessed last year at a regional we traveled to. Our team always gets up extra early to get in line at the door so we get good seats for scouting. At this event, despite being some of the first in the arena, we found the best seats already occupied by another team's stuff. I couldn't figure out how this had happened, but learned later that one of the volunteers from that team had taken advantage of his position as a volunteer to reserve his team the best seats before the arena opened.

At another event, I saw a volunteer trading buttons with an adult pit crew member so the pit crew member could watch his team's matches from right next to the field. After the match was over, they would trade back their buttons and the pit crew member would give their drive team feedback that would not have been possible without that field side access.

Our team records matches and uses the videos to improve drive team performance after every match. Last year I saw some great fieldside video playing in another team's pit. It was way better than ours, recorded from the stands, so I made inquiries. I learned that the "official" event photographer was a volunteer from that team and was supplying his team with field side video of their matches, without doing the same for other teams.

While I'm sure that the vast majority of volunteers are completely ethical, these incidents left me feeling shaken. I've concluded that there exists an "insider culture" where there is some amount of nudge-nudge, wink-wink going on which results in some teams having competitive advantages over others. If you do volunteer at an event where your team is competing, I would ask you not to engage in this type of behavior, and to report it if you observe it happening.

[Jon Stratis]

Originally Posted by ToddF

How I wish this were true. Some teams seem to use their team member volunteers to gain advantage over others. One of the most egregious examples of this I witnessed last year at a regional we traveled to. Our team always gets up extra early to get in line at the door so we get good seats for scouting. At this event, despite being some of the first in the arena, we found the best seats already occupied by another team's stuff. I couldn't figure out how this had happened, but learned later that one of the volunteers from that team had taken advantage of his position as a volunteer to reserve his team the best seats before the arena opened.

At another event, I saw a volunteer trading buttons with an adult pit crew member so the pit crew member could watch his team's matches from right next to the field. After the match was over, they would trade back their buttons and the pit crew member would give their drive team feedback that would not have been possible without that field side access.

Our team records matches and uses the videos to improve drive team performance after every match. Last year I saw some great fieldside video playing in another team's pit. It was way better than ours, recorded from the stands, so I made inquiries. I learned that the "official" event photographer was a volunteer from that team and was supplying his team with field side video of their matches, without doing the same for other teams.

While I'm sure that the vast majority of volunteers are completely ethical, these incidents left me feeling shaken. I've concluded that there exists an "insider culture" where there is some amount of nudge-nudge, wink-wink going on which results in some teams having competitive advantages over others. If you do volunteer at an event where your team is competing, I would ask you not to engage in this type of behavior, and to report it if you observe it happening.

If you see stuff like this, I recommend bringing it to the attention of the Volunteer Coordinator at the event. I can assure that, at least for the events I've volunteered at, there is no "insider culture" like what you describe. We're serious about keeping everything on a level playing field for teams. When something does occasionally happen that we see, we take corrective action immediately. Most of the time, it's nothing intentional, just someone being too excited and not thinking things through. A gentle reminder and a little coaching is usually enough to correct the situation.

[ToddF]

Originally Posted by Jon Stratis

Most of the time, it's nothing intentional, just someone being too excited and not thinking things through. A gentle reminder and a little coaching is usually enough to correct the situation.

That's good. I'll keep that in mind in the future.

[billbo911]

My roles as a volunteer have been as an RI last year at an event where my team participated, and as an FTAA at two events this year where we participated as well. Of the two, I can tell you it is BY FAR easier to be an RI and remain independent from and impartial toward your team.

When there are multiple RI's, it is very easy to have someone else inspect your team. You can still give your team advice on modifications and repairs, but ALWAYS have another RI sign of on the re-inspection.

As an FTAA, it's not quite that easy. There are not always multiple FTAA's available to have someone else interact with your team. If you are fortunate enough to work with two or more FTAA's, it get's a bit easier. (We actually had all 4 FTAA's at one event from our team, and 3 FTAA's at the other this year. Fortunately the FTA at both events were from different teams, so it made impartiality possible.)

The bottom line is, don't hesitate to volunteer, just know that you may be in situations where you need to walk away. It's not always easy to do, but sometimes it is necessary.

[mklinker]

I volunteered at the Purdue District last week where my team was competing. I served as an official scorer and had a great time. I enjoyed having other mentors take charge and not having the stress of the event upon my shoulders. My position was not one where there was any chance at bias. Either a tote was on the step and I clicked a button or it was not on the step.

I liked doing this so much that I have already volunteered for the Indiana District Championships (my team is a participant) and will volunteer at ALL future district events and let other adult mentors handle the day to day grind of the event.

I am still able to interact with the team in very small bursts to provide a suggestion or positive comment.

This also forces my students to think and act more independently which I see as a major benefit. In every case they will always have more than one adult to lean on as needed and the adults are always monitoring things and stepping in when needed.


......and you get free food......what could be better?

[Koko Ed]

Originally Posted by mklinker

......and you get free food......what could be better?

Really GOOD free food (especially at the championships)!

[Brian C]

I've been doing it for many years and found it to be a great way to have team members get a feel for stepping up and being mmore responsible. While it doesn't always work for every student I've found that the majority of them gain quite a bit of confidence when they realize that they are now responsible. Not that I do everything for the team and have the students watch during build season, - I don't.

But I find that many of the team members gain some maturity after the event and they eventually evolve to become team leaders. It's a great opportunity for them to grow as a person. Of course as they say.... Your mileage may vary.

You will most likely find that it will give you a different perspective on FIRST and help you digest the "big picture"

[Koko Ed]

Originally Posted by Brian C

You will most likely find that it will give you a different perspective on FIRST and help you digest the "big picture"

This is the most important thing. I think every person involved with FIRST should volunteer at least once, whether it's at an official event or an off season. It gives you a perspective outside of your own team and gets you to meet other people who have a different world view of FIRST. I also thinks it helps you to better understand FIRST's vision and will give the the confidence to expand your horizons and even make contacts that could serve you in the future.
I wholeheartedly suggest to anyone who has not tried volunteering at an event to do so. You won't regret it.

[Richard Wallace]

Originally Posted by Koko Ed

Really GOOD free food (especially at the championships)!

I agree -- have been at several regionals and some districts where the volunteer food was better than what we've had at some Championships. However, I think venue contracts may restrict the Championship options.

Originally Posted by Koko Ed

I wholeheartedly suggest to anyone who has not tried volunteering at an event to do so. You won't regret it.

Well said. Volunteers with team perspective help to make everyone's event experience better, and participants with volunteer experience help build stronger teams.

[brandon.cottrell]

Would volunteering for a job like field reset or assistant MC (Jobs with minimal to no impact on the actual game), and scouting for teams at the event be considered non-GP?

[rsisk]

Originally Posted by brandon.cottrell

Would volunteering for a job like field reset or assistant MC (Jobs with minimal to no impact on the actual game), and scouting for teams at the event be considered non-GP?

GP or not it's wrong. You are either a volunteer or you are working with your team, not both. See ToddF posts earlier in the thread.

[Jon Stratis]

Originally Posted by brandon.cottrell

Would volunteering for a job like field reset or assistant MC (Jobs with minimal to no impact on the actual game), and scouting for teams at the event be considered non-GP?

I think it would be wrong to intentionally try to do both. At the same time, it's natural as your seeing teams come through and watching them to form opinions on which one is best. Half the time I'm up at the field between matches, I'm chatting with the MC and game announcer about the relative merits of different robots (it helps that I know both of those individuals very well). But despite forming those opinions, I don't collect any actual data to back them up. That's the job of the people actually tasked with scouting on my team, sitting up in the stands. Since the team alliance decisions are based solely on hard data and not opinions, my opinions never really seem to come up during the teams Friday evening meeting.

[Wetzel]

Originally Posted by brandon.cottrell

Would volunteering for a job like field reset or assistant MC (Jobs with minimal to no impact on the actual game), and scouting for teams at the event be considered non-GP?

If you are asked for your opinion on robots based upon having been field side and seen a lot of matches, you should feel free to give your opinion and share in the scouting discussion. You should not be sitting down there with scouting sheets collecting data during matches.

I've volunteered a fair bit, both at events where I've been involved with 1 or more teams and at events where I've no connection to any of them. Since I've been on 2914, we've tried to provide 2 volunteers at every event we go to. They have mostly in positions like awards assistant, crowd control, field reset. I've been an FTA at events where I've had teams I've affiliation with, and I don't see any way around that anymore. I've been a mentor for 13 years now on 5 different teams and currently work with 7 different teams on a regular basis.

With the need for volunteers increasing as we move to more events, particularly when an area jumps to districts, people associated with a team will end up in positions where they could have a direct impact on a match. Something that I think is important to remember, however, is that all volunteers have a direct impact on the student experience, and the student experience is what I try to keep in the forefront of my decisions and actions, and I would hope all volunteers do as well.


Wetzel

[Kevin Sevcik]

Originally Posted by ToddF

Our team always gets up extra early to get in line at the door so we get good seats for scouting. At this event, despite being some of the first in the arena, we found the best seats already occupied by another team's stuff. I couldn't figure out how this had happened, but learned later that one of the volunteers from that team had taken advantage of his position as a volunteer to reserve his team the best seats before the arena opened.

Don't you know there's no saving of seats? Or at least there shouldn't be and this is one of the many reasons why.

Back in college I was tagged as scorekeeper for a couple of years at LSR and once at Champs. My biggest problem was occasionally getting distracted watching my team and thus not being prompt on the field reset stuff.

A bit after that I was drafted for LRI at LSR for a year when our mainstay was unavailable. It's about the same as being an RI at your team's competition, except if your team does something that needs an LRI ruling, obviously. I was a good mentor and made sure we didn't have anything questionable on the bot, but if something came up my plan was to conference with the two most experienced unaffliated RIs on hand when making the call.