Out to New England FRC teams...

NE FIRST Things FIRST

Week of October 5, 2015

Event Registration Deadlines

Second District Event registration opened today at noon! If you have not done so already, please be sure to register for both your first and second events. If your team is running into any issues with registration, contact Team Support (1-800-871-8326 ext. 0 or FRCTeams@usfirst.org) and your local Regional Director.

Here are the next few upcoming FRC deadlines (times are at noon unless otherwise specified):

Thursday, Nov. 5 - Unrestricted regional/district registration opens
Thursday, Nov. 12 - Inter-district registration opens
Monday, Nov. 23 - Payment due for 1^st district event, 2^nd district event and all regionals; Inter-district registration closes

Important dates are also listed on the FRC calendar. Please note that District Teams must wait for Unrestricted Regional Event Registration to register for a Regional competition.

Save the Date: NE FIRST University Day at UMass Amherst

We have another chance for teams to learn more about FIRST before Kickoff! NE FIRST University Day at UMass Amherst is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 14 from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. If there is any topic you want to learn more about, or one you haven't gotten a chance to see at the other University Day events, let us know! Whether it's topic you need to know more about or a topic you'd like to present, email FIRST Senior Mentor Dana Henry at dhenry@usfirst.org with your requests.

Stay tuned for details in the near future!

Behind the Lines 2015

Behind the Lines is returning for 2015! Behind the Lines is a collaboration between FIRST Robotics Competition and FRC GameSense. The purpose of this series is to make key knowledge and resources available to the community through an engaging hour-long show. The first half will be a presentation by the invited experts, followed by a Q & A session on the topic.

Fundraising 101/Team Marketing 101 (Aired Wednesday, Oct. 7)

Experts: Joyce Walters and Elise Cronin-Hurley, Team 1902

Topics included fundraising toolkit review, creating business plans, fundraising examples and best practices, branding your team, presenting to sponsors, and maintaining sponsorship relationships. The archived webcast can be found here.

Alumni Programs and Applying for Scholarships - Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 9 p.m.

Experts: TBD

This session is geared toward all FRC teams. Topics will include scholarships and alumni programs.

To submit your questions in advance for any Behind the Lines broadcast, email

btl@frcgamesense.com or tweet questions to @FRCGameSense with #FRCBTL.The Behind the Lines archives can be found on the webpage or the YouTube channel.

Support FIRST and the STEM Education Coalition!

Want to help support STEM education in the U.S.? FIRST is a member of the STEM Education Coalition - a large group of organizations lobbying for STEM Education funding in Title II-E (Section 2005) of the ESEA reauthorization.

We now have a specific "ask" in addition to general support for Title II-E (Section 2005) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act providing for STEM education including afterschool competitive programs. A "Dear Collogue" letter is being circulated for signatures by Representatives Hanna (R NY) and Courtney (D CT), which asks Chairman Kline and Ranking Member Scott of the Senate Education and Work Force Committee to preserve Title II-E of the Senate bill.

The coalition has set up a website to generate word.doc that addresses the person's letter to Representative based on return address. One can just fill in one's name and address, click print and have a letter generated asking the local Representative to sign-on to the Hanna-Courtney letter. Each letter that a friend of FIRST generates will help support the push for STEM education funding.

A sample letter is set up on the STEM Education Coalition's website, which the sender can personalize and send directly to their representative in the U.S. House. Click on this link to get started.

2016 FRC Radio Update

You might have read in an earlier FRC blog post that the D-Link DAP-1522 Rev. B used in the 2015 FRC competition season is being discontinued and new options were being tested starting at IRI. For the 2016 season, we will be switching to Open Mesh's OM5P-AN dual band access point.

Here's the rub:

fewer Ethernet ports (2)
higher cost

But here's why we're really excited:

still be able to use one device while at home and on the competition field (i.e. no secondary access point for use at home - for those of you who remember 2009)
still able to use diagnostic LEDs (you'd be surprised how rare this feature is becoming)
multiple features (bandwidth limit, QOS, etc.) that combine to decimate, if not eliminate, the "Christmas tree" phenomenon (network congestion that results in robot radios rapidly dropping in and out during a match)
the firmware is open, so we can control it (the FRC firmware will not be available until Kickoff)

You can find more details in the original blog post by Kate Pilotte, the Kit of Parts manager for FRC.

YPP Safety Meeting Reminder

As part of the FIRST Youth Protection Policy (YPP), all teams are required to hold a meeting specifically to address issues around standards of behavioral conduct and team member safety. The safety meeting should address the YPP Code of Conduct, found on page 11 of the YPP Program Guide, and a discussion about appropriate vs. inappropriate behavior.

The FIRST Team Safety Meeting Guide video can be watched here.

NH TechFest 2015

The 2015 New Hampshire TechFest, hosted by FRC 3467, will take place on Saturday, Oct. 24 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Windham High School in Windham, NH. The mission of the NH TechFest is to interest and excite middle and high school-age students from throughout the New England area about the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) through hands-on exhibits and entertaining presentations. The event is targeted towards teens in grades 6-12 and admission is free.

NE FIRST Website Photo Contest!

Do you have a great photo from the 2015 District Championship of the event? NE FIRST is looking for a photo from the 2015 District Championship that embodies the excitement and spirit of NE FIRST. We are looking for a photo of the event, not a specific team or robot, to feature on the new NE FIRST website! The deadline is Friday, Oct. 23 at 5 p.m. Submissions should be sent to SMedia@nefirst.org and we will credit you and/or your team for the photo on the NE FIRST website.

NIDays Boston 2015 Presentation & Demonstration Opportunity

We have received an invitation for teams and their members to attend the National Instruments annual NIDays event in Boston.The event will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2015 from 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. at Hynes Convention Center.

This is an opportunity for you to meet the most engaged software people in this area of the country as well as attend the special programs offered during the day for your personal enrichment as well as represent your FIRST team to the larger world of National Instruments. Show off your robots, find mentors, information for your team, and support for this year's challenge!

Join engineers and scientists worldwide to learn about the latest technologies, best practices, and application trends for measurement, embedded, and test systems. This technical event provides introductory and advanced sessions as well as hands-on learning workshops, interactive technology demos, and peer-to-peer networking opportunities that can help you improve the productivity of your engineering teams.

If your team is interested in attending the event, please contact Steve Cremer ASAP at scremer@nefirst.org.

Cambridge Science Festival

Celebrate the 10th anniversary Cambridge Science Festival with us! The Cambridge Science Festival, the first of its kind in the United States, is a celebration showcasing the leading edge in science, technology, engineering and math. A multifaceted, multicultural event every spring, the Cambridge Science Festival makes science accessible, interactive and fun! The festival takes place from April 15-26, 2016, runs for 10 days & nights and welcomes all ages and backgrounds. More information about the event can be found here.

We can have up to 7-8 tables specifically for FIRST programs at the event. If your team is interested, contact Steve Cremer at scremer@nefirst.org.

Prudential Spirit of Community Award

Deadline: Nov. 3

Students in grades 5-12 in the U.S. who have volunteered in the past 12 months are invited to apply for a Prudential Spirit of Community Award. 102 State Honorees (2 per state) will receive $1,000 awards, engraved silver medallions, and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. with a parent for four days of recognition events April 30 - May 3, 2015. The Top 10 youth will receive a $5,000 award, and a $5,000 grant from The Prudential Foundation for the nonprofit charitable organization of their choice. The RFP link can be found here.

FIRST VISTA Program

The FIRST AmeriCorps VISTA mission is to create and expand the vision of FIRST by working in areas that have been deemed underserved: lower socio-economic communities, rural areas, and areas that have little to no support or resources to be able to easily access STEM initiatives. The VISTA program at FIRST strives to match an AmeriCorps VISTA Volunteer to our field structure in support of teams within underserved communities. VISTAs work closely with all teams in their area as general support, with a strong focus in underserved populations. More information about the VISTA program can be found here.

Additionally, here is a list of the VISTAs that are serving in New England (not including VISTA leaders):

Connecticut

Karla Aguilar (kaguilar@usfirst.org)

Lauren Jefferson (ljefferson@usfirst.org)

Massachusetts - Boston

Abigail Cohen (acohen@usfirst.org)

Christina Trimingham (ctrimingham@usfirst.org)

Massachusetts - Leominister

Paul LeFebvre (plefebvre@usfirst.org)

New Hampshire - FIRST HQ
Jess Eggart (jeggart@usfirst.org)

Upcoming Events

Boston NE FIRST University Day

Saturday, Oct. 10