FIRST $CASH$ prize...

[TheNotoriousKid]

...i was wondering why first did not give cash prizes for winning nationals. FIRST wants to attract more viewers and students and i think money...duh. I know some are probably thinkin that is what the scholarships are for...but umm...i disagree. Money could be used to build next years robot...travel...rent "warehouses"...build stuff...and even give to students to go to school...or some shoes...lol. Well i am for money... The only cons i can think of are...a more competive spirit...which may cancel out gp... and people might deem it unneccesary to find sponsors. but thats what i think...


EDIT: What about if the prize was a refund for your national registration fee?

[dubious elise]

FIRST isn't about the money. It is about the experience.

[TheNotoriousKid]

You still get the experience...

[Pavan Dave]

Money would be a GREAT motivator for certain teams in this game but the aspects of this organization is the fact that you have to work with your community and find sponsors and with that crash prize if there is one than teams might drop sponsors and it would take that factor out of FIRST.

Also you mention that it will take GP out of the competition due to people who want to win JUST for the money. Also this might turn into a MORE mentor oriented game because all the mentors would be working harder because they want the team to win and get some money so they will be more "set" for the future years.


Overall I vote no. Money = BAD for FIRST.


Pavan.

[kjohnson]

Scholarships (instead of cash) would be much better for the students on winning teams.

[Jay Trzaskos]

FIRST definitely should not offer a cash prize for multiple reasons, (A) Why should we make ourselves any more like battle bots? and (B) It is both against the nature of GP and FIRST in general.

the true meaning of a professional is; a hardworking individual who sees both the goal and the means to obtain it. They do not work for their own gains, but for the betterment of all those around them.

We should be doing what we do in order to better the larger community. FIRST is working to change culture and we cannot change our culture for the better by turning FIRST into a NASCAR season or a bad reality TV show. We show those who are not involved, and others that are part of FIRST, what you can do with an education and a good work ethic, and we do this through inspiring others to carry on and teach others the goals of FIRST. All that adding a cash prize will do to FIRST is turn it into the equivalent of another failed FOX reality show.

The reward for winning Nationals is that you still have a higher goal to reach for, that being the Chairman's Award. The ultimate goal for any FIRST team, showing that all your work to spread the ideals of FIRST is actually working.

(NOTE: American Robot is a good reality show )

[Rick]

Why should the winner of the competition get money? Why not the chairmans award? Why not the rookie award?

It's simple, you add money to the competition and you get a stronger "desire to win" which means cheating.

[Cory]

Originally Posted by nukemknight

Scholarships (instead of cash) would be much better for the students on winning teams.

People should just apply for the scholarships FIRST already offers. Why add more scholarships when some of the ones theyve already got go unfilled?

[JaneYoung]

Originally Posted by TheNotoriousKid

...i was wondering why first did not give cash prizes for winning nationals.

Without going into any other thoughts, my first thought was:
Where would FIRST get the money for this idea?

My response to my question was, increased costs to the teams.
Then it went downhill from there.

Jane

[Bill Gold]

If FIRST put an emphasis on winning at any cost (cash reward for winning) then I would never rejoin / start another team, and I would actually lobby against the program. Bad idea, no way around it. There are plenty of those competitions around, if you want this environment go join them and leave this great experience as untainted as can be.

-Bill Gold

[Tim Delles]

This is an overall bad idea... As one of the students on my team has already stated it goes against Gracious Professionalism and the ideas that Dean and Woodie founded FIRST on.

[Beth Sweet]

Ok guys, let's think of this from a pure logic standpoint. Even if we did want money, FIRST is a non-profit, so where would that additional cash prize money come from? Ding ding! That would be from the teams. I don't know about you, but most teams have a tough time coming up with enough from year to year as is. So I'm going to vote no here...

[TheNotoriousKid]

Okay no cash prize...what about a refund for the national registration fee?

[Cory]

Originally Posted by TheNotoriousKid

Okay no refund...what about a refund for the national registration fee?

Thats the same thing as getting paid...

[Bill Gold]

Originally Posted by TheNotoriousKid

Okay no refund...what about a refund for the national registration fee?

No. Any kind of monetary reward for getting any kind of placement or award is a bad idea. We don't need to give people any reason to either perform hollow acts or sabatoge other robots / "go for the throat" on the field in an attempt to get any kind of monetary gain. This program is about learning, competing with honor, and having fun.