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These bi-weekly calls will help to facilitate a community in which coaches and mentors can ask questions and learn about different aspects of FIRST Tech Challenge.

Goals of the Coach/Mentor Calls:

  • Help coaches and mentors throughout the FTC Season.
  • Connect coaches and mentors with each other, future connections for future questions or issues.
  • Educate attendees about changes within FTC.
  • Expand the knowledge base of attendees. Help attendees think outside of the box of what they normally would have considered.
  • Share the expectations FTC-Iowa has for coaches and mentors.

Dates:

Every other Wednesday starting on Sept. 7, 2024. The calls will begin at 7:00pm Central Time.

Themes:

 

Date
Time
Topic
Presenter
Sept. 4, 20247pm 

Engineering Design Process (EDP)

  • How to use the EDP with your team to prevent student frustration and to make progress on the robot.
Scott Anson, 
Coach, Mentor & Volunteer
Sept. 18, 20247pm 

Register & Sign up: 

  • What's the difference between "registration" and "sign-up"? 
  • Where do we need to register?
    • FIRST portal for Students 
    • FTC-Iowa
    • Volunteers
Rebecca Whitaker,
Program Delivery Partner, Iowa
Oct. 2, 20247pm Coach & Mentor ResourcesSusan Eckert,
FIRST Senior Mentor
Oct. 16, 20247pm Preparing for meetsTBD
Oct. 30, 20247pm Open Discussion with League Admins
Each league will have a breakout room for small group discussions		League Admins from Iowa
Nov 13, 20247pm 

Scouting

  • Why scouting is important and how one team scouts.
Team 9974, T.H.O.R.
Nov. 27, 20247pm

The Engineering Portfolio

  • What makes a strong portfolio?
  • What do judges look for?
  • What to avoid?
Team 13415, Electric Storm
Dec. 11, 20247pm

How to Prepare for a Tournament

  • The biggest difference between a meet and a tournament is the judging component. An Iowa Judge Advisor will discuss how to prepare for the judges interview.
  • Each tournament is a bit different, regarding facility, pit accommodations, dining options, etc. Tournament hosts will be available for small group discussion.
Judge Advisor & Tournament hosts
Jan. 8, 20257pm

The Dean's List

  • What does the Dean's List mean?
  • How can coaches nominate a strong Dean's List candidate?
  • How do interviews work in Iowa?
Madison Kriege
Jan. 22, 20257pm

Student Leadership Board (SLB)

Hear from current SLB members.

 
Feb. 5, 20257pm

Off-Season Opportunities: Fundraising and Summer Camps

  • The best time to do fundraising is during the off-season. Hear from successful coaches and mentors about what they do to raise money outside of team grants.
  • The off-season is also the best time to do outreach and recruit future FTC students. Hear from teams about their off-season programming.
 

All calls will be conducted via Zoom. Attendees must sign-up to participate.