Revision as of 04:46, 4 April 2010

I was a student on Team 1640 from 2007 (Rack 'n Roll) until I graduated from Downingtown East in 2009. I continued to mentor the team, commuting 7 hours from Penn State Main every weekend during the 2010 build and competition seasons. Slightly alarmingly, I logged just over 340 hours, 4,000 miles, and $650 in bus tickets in 11 weeks. (I've been told this makes me insane. I find this to be a rather belated realization, not the least because that's easily less than half the time--albeit, many more miles--I spent in '08 or '09.)

Years as a Student

I was the captain-manager of FRC Team 1640 for the 2008 (Overdrive) and 2009 (Lunacy) seasons, until I handed off the position to Carly McKown before graduating from Downingtown High School East Campus in June of 2009. I took the position after Head Mentor Emeritus and Team Founder Paul Sabatino went on medical sabbatical. In that time, I served as the team's representative and student liaison, chief media-creator (now a separate department), paperwork-doer, question-answerer, scheduler and organizer, finance officer (also separate department now), etc. I was also the first student member of the Steering Committee and Design Team in my capacities as captain and lead mechanical student, respectively.

In the 2009 season, I became the first student member of the design team (largely thanks to Clem McKown's mass emails), a position we have begun to expand for other students in the 2010 season. This experience enhanced my ability to serve the team's lead mechanical student and pit crew leader--the latter fortunately mostly obsolete in 2009. (The Annapolis Regional judges also seemed to like that a student possessed that knowledge.)

In the winter of 2008, Clem McKown, Foster Schucker, and I started organizing pre-kickoff classes for many FRC subjects, several of which I taught. I also serve as an occasional VEX mentor and have run the scoring system at our annual Eastern PA VEX Regional as well as taught an Enabling Mentors VEX programming session.

As the team's representative in 2008, I also had the wonderful opportunity to help start a JFLL club at Sugartown Elementary School in the nearby Great Valley School District.

By a series of flukes of attendance, I also became the main robot operator (second driver) in 2007 (which held until I graduated in 2009) and the chief welder in 2009. By deliberate stubbornness, I also joined the pit crew in 2007, learning more and more until eventually leading the crew in the 2008 post-season.

Years as a Mentor

The 2010 (Breakaway) is my first season as an FRC mentor. During the build season, I commuted weekly between Downingtown and State College by bus (roughly 3.5 hours), logging 176 hours before ship. When at DEC, I teach, supervise, and coordinate mechanical design, prototyping, welding, fabrication, and assembly. During the Finger Lakes Regional, I worked as a pit mentor and occasional coach, and created the design handout and poster files as well as editing the slide show video.

Sub-Team Membership

The team has restructured (or perhaps just "structured") several times in my tenure, but I am/was a member of the following sub-teams throughout the years (in order of precedence, notice the evolution):
DEWBOT III Mechanical (Drive and Arm) Team (student)
DEWBOT III Pit Crew (student)
DEWBOT III Drive Team (operator)
DEWBOT III Scouting/Tactical Team (operator)

DEWBOT IV Managerial Team (captain-manager)
DEWBOT IV Mechanical (Drive and Catapult) Team (student co-leader)
DEWBOT IV Pit Crew (student co-leader)
DEWBOT IV Drive Team (operator)
DEWBOT IV Scouting/Tactical Team (operator)

DEWBOT V Steering Committee (captain-manager)
DEWBOT V Design Team (student leader)
DEWBOT V Mechanical (Drive and Manipulation Systems) Team (student leader)
DEWBOT V Pit Crew (student leader)
DEWBOT V Drive Team (operator, occasional off-season coach)
DEWBOT V Scouting/Tactical team (operator, occasional off-season coach)

DEWBOT VI Mechanical Team (mentor)
DEWBOT VI Competition Team (backup coach)
...It's amazing how a 7 hour commute really cuts into what you can be part of...

Photos

I'll refrain from showing the hundreds (no, really) of photos I've been in during my tenure, but in summary:

• 

  DEWBOT III: What on Earth have I gotten myself into?

• 

  But I got used to it. And made pit crew! (for 3 years)

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  And drive team! Yay! (also 3 years)

• 

  DEWBOT IV: Yeah, I think I'm pretty used to this build stuff. I also made team captain (2 years)

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  Yep, definitely used to it.

• 

  ...Ok, used to it, guys.

• 

  Jeez, we do this a lot.

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  But we win stuff now! (Alliance captain at PARC XI)

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  And we've diversified! (demo for Sugartown Elementary FIRST LEGO League I helped start)

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  DEWBOT V: Hey, I working right with the mentors.

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  And welding, cool!

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  And presenting the program (presentation for Girls Exploring Tomorrow's Technology)

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  DEWBOT VI: Hey, I *am* a mentor. (working with new students)

• 

  DEWBOT VI: How did I become one of those? (mentor check of pivot drive)

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  A welding mentor, no less.

• 

  And a coach (sometimes)

Experience

I'm currently at Penn State - University Park, where I'm a Schreyer Honors College Scholar (<2% of all PSU undergraduates) and mechanical engineering major with minors in engineering mechanics and military studies (AFROTC). I plan on enlisting into the U.S. Army as a Reserve Component mechanic/engineering technician and/or commissioning into the U.S. Air Force (upon graduation) as an active engineering officer. I am also a student member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).

Places I've Been

United States

Pennsylvania - I live here
Illinois - I was born here
Maryland - Robotics (2009 Annapolis Regional)
Connecticut - Robotics (2008 Hartford Regional)
Massacres - Robotics
Georgia - Military
Vermont - Military
Colorado - Military
New York - Military
Indiana
Florida
New Jersey
Michigan
Texas
North Carolina
South Carolina
Nevada
Washington, D.C.
West Virginia
Virginia
Hawaii
New Mexico
Arizona
Puerto Rico

International

Andhra Pradesh (Hyderabad, Tirupati), India
Tamil Nadu (Madras), India
Onatario, Canada
British Columbia (Vancouver), Canada
United Kingdom (London, Hampshire, Devon)
Greece (Athens)