2024 Training Calls
Beginning Tuesday, January 9th, 2024, through Tuesday, February 27th, 2024, we will once again do our host 30-minute, weekly, one-topic calls for any and all teams interested in getting support, learning about how other teams prepare for the season, and more.
We are looking for teams, mentors, etc., to help us be the experts on these calls. Is there an area in which you or your team excel? Propose that as a discussion topic and help lead the call.
Current/Possible Topics:
1. How do you plan your build season, from strategy to design to competition?
2. How to prepare your students to talk to judges.
3. Pit design ideas from simple to “WOW.”
4. Traveling to events affordably.
5. How to engage a large number of students on an FRC team.
6. Coding 101 – how to help get students to become coders when they’ve never coded before.
—Other topics can be ones that you all are experts in.
Please email Chris Osborne – cosborne@firstindianarobotics.org as soon as possible with a topic your team would like to cover or if there are topics you’d like to see discussed.
3rd Play Discount
Is your team interested in getting into a 3rd play in the Indiana District? There are still openings at our Washington Event, and we are currently offering a $500 discount for any teams signing up for a 3rd play.
This makes the total cost for an additional event only $500.
Contact Dan Leathers – dleathers@firstindianarobotics.org to sign up or for more information.
At this point in the season teams MUST go through FIN to add a 3rd event.
Volunteer Registration is Open
FRC volunteer registration is open. As a reminder, we are asking every team to supply at least one volunteer at every FRC event this year. Examples of FRC volunteers are:
Inspectors
Queuers
Pit Admin
Safety Glass Attendant
Field Reset
Photographers or video
Some of our key volunteer roles have assistant roles and that is a great way to learn about becoming a key volunteer.
Here are directions on how to use your dashboard to volunteer.
Statehouse Day – January 17th
Mark your calendars and sign up here to attend this year’s statehouse day. We will be doing demos on the atrium floor, thanking our legislators for their hard work to support competitive robotics and continuing to spread the important message of FIRST and STEM for students in Indiana.
Sign your team up to attend – https://forms.gle/7zfNpJEAb6SP5Cec7
Express Enrollment – NEW
FIRST just launched the Express Enrollment youth registration system, which provides a simplified experience on mobile and desktop to register and accept youth (U.S. and Canada only) to FIRST® teams. FIRST lead coaches/mentors can generate web links or QR codes in the FIRST Dashboard to share with parents and guardians of their youth participants, granting access to the application.
Parents and guardians then use the web link or QR code from the lead coach/mentor to register their youth to a team in a few simple steps. After applying to a team, coaches/mentors will need to accept the students through the FIRST Dashboard. Once the coach/mentor approves or declines the request to join a team, the parent/guardian is notified via email.
Please see below resources and instructions below, accessible from the Youth Registration Overview page:
Coaches/mentors can start today by visiting the Team Contacts/Roster section of their Team Dashboard to create a QR code/invitation link.
Instructions for the parent/guardians to complete the registration can be found on this document.
Questions? View Express Enrollment Frequently Asked Questions
Once the parents apply their youth to your team, you will need to go back to the Team Contacts page to accept or decline the youth team members listed as “Applied Pending” by selecting the “Options” menu on their contact card. You will then see those team members on your Printable Roster.
Please note your team will need to have two screened lead coaches in place before you can invite your team members.
Kickoff Surrogate Paperwork
If a team is unable to pick up its Kickoff Kit at the local kickoff selected, an alternate team may be designated to do so. The team unable to attend must be registered to pick up their Kickoff Kit at the local kickoff AND provide FIRST with an authorized surrogate kit pick-up letter, submitted/signed by the lead coach/mentor 1 or 2. This letter must include 1) Your team number 2) the Kickoff location 3) the name and team number of the surrogate team picking up the Kickoff Kit. All surrogate kit pickup letters must be received at FIRST by January 2, 2024.
As a reminder our kickoff locations are: Click Here for Details
UIndy
Bloomington
Castle High School
West Lafayette
Michigan City
Cross Program News
FLL Challenge Qualifying Tournaments are done and we are heading to Semi-State competitions next this week. We will have one at Purdue Fort Wayne and one at University of Southern Indiana. Semi-State competitions will be help Saturday, December 9, at Purdue Fort Wayne and Sunday, December 10 at the University of Southern Indiana. More information can be found here.
FTC Tournaments are also around the corner. Read more on our website.
We are always on the lookout for judges, volunteers, etc. All of the Indiana events are available for volunteer sign up right now via your dashboard.
Field Availability
Will your team have a 1/2 field or full field available for other teams to come use? If so, could you please complete this form and we will post the information on our website as a resource for teams.