FAQQ: What is FIRST Robotics? A: FIRST Robotics is an international program that aims to promote student involvement in science and technology through hands-on problems and working with professionals. Visit www.usfirst.org/aboutus/vision for more information. Q: What are the requirements to join the Shenendehowa High School Robotics Team? A:
Q: Is the student contribution for the club $195? A: The total contribution for each student is $395. We break the cost into two installments, $195 and $200. This contribution has not increased for three years. We are able to keep the contribution to $395 thanks to successful fundraising and sponsorship efforts. The student contribution for this extracurricular program is lower than most considering the students are involved for 9 to 12 months. Q: What does the $395 cover? A:
Q: What is the commitment of the students in the Fall? A: Team members are expected to attend meetings Thursdays from 7:00—9:00 PM. Q: What and when is the VEX Tournament? A: Professor Larry Ruff of RPI graciously creates a game for Capital Region FIRST teams to prepare them for the build season. The teams build VEX scale robots that complete tasks such as climbing stairs and picking up objects. The competition took place on Saturday December 10, 2011 Q: What is Kickoff? A: Kickoff is the official beginning of the FIRST Robotics Competition season. A game is unveiled on the Saturday following New Year’s Day. The team will be attending the kick-off event at RPI. More information will be shared soon. Q: Can parents attend Kickoff? A: Parents are encouraged to attend. The size of our team may necessitate moving some of us to an “overflow room”. Stay tuned for more information. Q: What happens the Sunday after the unveiling? A: The team will work at Shenendehowa, learning the game rules and designing robot concepts. Q: What is build season? A: The fall is just the warm up to the competitive portion of the program. The build season begins the Saturday after New Year’s Day when the game for 2012 is unveiled. It continues for a period of 6 weeks during which time we feverishly build a robot that best plays the game. Q: Does the meeting structure change during the build season? A: Yes. We have meetings every weeknight from 7:00—9:00PM. We work on weekends from 10:00AM to 4:00PM. Q: What is the participation requirement during build season? A: Team members are expected to attend Thursday night meetings. In addition, members must complete 40 hours of work to be eligible to attend competitions. These hours must be confirmed by mentor signatures on members' Activity Logs. Team members are strongly encouraged to attend Kickoff and any Community Connection Events that arise. Q: Is it true that parents of freshmen must attend regional competitions? A: YES. This is for the safety and positive experience of our youngest team members. The events are large and lively. Freshmen feel safe knowing that a parent is there if they need them. Q: Will transportation to competetions for parents be provided? A: Seats on the bus are reserved for students first. Any remaining seats are offered to parents on a first come first serve basis, with freshmen parents receiving priority. Q: What are the dates for the regional competitions? A: We compete at the Verizon Center in Manchester, New Hampshire March 2 and 3. We compete in Hartford, Connecticut March 30 and 31 The FAQ can be a downloaded as a Word document by clicking here
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