Dear FIRST® Coaches and Mentors,
Beginning in May 2014, FIRST® will require all youth team members to register in support of our enhanced Youth Protection Program. FIRST understands that an important component of protecting children is knowing who the children are on our teams. In addition, having parent/guardian contact information increases our ability to communicate important information, and also provides us with a better understanding of whom our programs serve.
Registration of youth team members is currently being done in two of our programs – FIRST® Tech Challenge and FIRST® Robotics Competition – and we are extending this requirement to all FIRST programs starting with the 2014-2015 program season (Junior FIRST® LEGO® League youth team member registration will be optional for the 2014-2015 program season).
There are two ways for youth team members to register depending on the program:
- For FIRST® LEGO® League and Junior FIRST LEGO League: At the time of team registration, in the student/roster section, the Lead Coach/Mentor will enter the parent/guardian email address, which will trigger an automated email to the parent/guardian of team members containing the link to the youth team member registration site. The parent/guardian will be asked to provide basic information, such as name, contact information, some demographic characteristics of the child, and sign an electronic Consent & Release Form.
- For FIRST Robotics Competition and FIRST Tech Challenge: The Lead Coach/Mentor will share the registration link directly with the youth team member if age 13 or older (for those under age 13, see steps in 1 above), and the youth team member will start the process by creating his/her own user account. Youth team members can only enter limited information, including the parent’s email address. The parent/guardian will receive an email from the youth team member registration system with information on how to complete the registration process.
As part of this registration process, the Lead Coach/Mentor will have the ability to accept or deny the child on the team. The names of all youth team members will be listed on a team roster which is required for entry into all official FIRST events or competitions.
Youth team members and parents/guardians who do not have access to a computer or the Internet should contact the FIRST Youth Protection Department to discuss an alternative method for registering at 800-871-8326, x250 or safetyFIRST@usfirst.org.
For more information on the youth team member registration process, please click here.
We appreciate the work you do to make FIRST programs successful. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about the youth team member registration process at 1-800-871-8326, x0 or firstteammembers@usfirst.org.
Sincerely,
Donald E. Bossi
President, FIRST
Steven R. Chism
Vice President of Programs, FIRST
Announcement about FIRST’s new YPP.
Also, from STIMS
Youth Team Member Registration will open on May 27, 2014 at noon.