2011 Dean's List Submission

NOTE: Last names have been omitted.

Alex's Nomination Essay

Alex W. is a true example of the FIRST program. Even though he became involved with his team a year late (due to a wrestling injury) he has shown the passion and understanding of someone who has been a FIRST-er for life.

He began last year quietly stepping in where needed, asking, "What else can I do to help?" and taking on tasks assigned to him with enthusiasm and genuine passion. This year, after losing quite a few of our experienced members and mentors, Alex was eager to step in and take on a role of much more responsibility. Alex works with and is involved in nearly every aspect of the team. He understands that FIRST is not just about the robot, and leads each of his teams with that understanding. Alex is always one of the first students at the build site and the last to leave. He is constantly working to mentor new team members and guiding them in the right direction.

Alex is a member of four different sub-teams within the team. He leads the CAD team and awards team, and works with the public relations and build team. He finds time to work with and mentor the younger members of the team, encouraging them to step up and take on challenges. Alex continually strives to make team 1987 truly student led. He facilitates brainstorming, designing, and building sessions, and encourages other students to take charge of their own parts of the team. No one is ever left out when Alex is around—he can find a place and job for anyone. Looking forward to next year, Alex is already planning for the growth and sustainability of the team. He is working to set up presentations to local businesses and schools to spread the word about FIRST. Many of his weekends are spent presenting the robot to the community through various city events. His summers are spent volunteering at Team 1987's elementary summer camps where he mentors young students on building a robot, designing a website, and competing in the spirit of FIRST. Through these camps, the next generation of Broncobots is under the influence of one of the best mentors the team has to offer.

Perhaps the most impressive part of Alex's character is he does not desire credit for himself. Alex was first to step up to write the Woodie Flowers nomination for a mentor on the team, and first to volunteer to work on the Chairman's Award submission for the team. He delights in seeing others recognized for their hard work and successes. The phrase "there is no 'I' in team" is a perfect description of Alex's work ethic. He is a team player through and through.

Alex remains calm even in the most stressful situations. He has a clear understanding of the task at hand. He sees the big picture and provides an impartial outlook on the situation. When the team traveled to the Missouri State Fair, the robot was nonfunctional because the new router and charger had not arrived in time to assemble before the trip. Alex stepped in as soon as the robot was unloaded from the truck, swiftly taking care of everything that needed to be done for the robot to be displayed that day. When the router was not working properly, he did not panic, but instead went to find the assistance of someone more experienced at programming that could help him to fix it. This tolerance for stress is what makes him such a strong member of the team. He is a fast learner and takes time out of his already busy schedule, outside of robotics, to help with what can be done away from the build site.

Alex W. is devoted to FIRST and what it represents for students everywhere. His positive, gracious attitude is infectious. It is from Alex that we have all learned to ask, "What can I do to help?" He is a constant reminder of the attitude of service that FIRST desires. Alex uses every opportunity to extol the virtues and values of FIRST, and he always puts the team, the community, and the FIRST program above himself.

Cameron's Nomination Essay

Without a doubt, Cameron T. has been a driving force on Team 1987 since his first day on the team three years ago. Cameron became hooked on FIRST a year earlier on team 1782. From this very first taste of FIRST, he knew he wanted to pursue engineering as a future career. After seeing Cameron's dedication his family wanted him to be a part of a more integrated engineering education, and moved to Lee's Summit so Cameron could join the Broncobots.

During the summer leading up to the build season, Cameron jumped right in with the other team members by volunteering at the team's elementary robotics summer camps. He worked with and mentored young students, teaching them to build robots and compete in the spirit of FIRST. During the next two summers, Cameron took on a much bigger role in the camps by designing games and building playing fields for the students to compete on. His knowledge and dedication did not stop at the boundaries of his own team. When the team from another high school in the city ran their robotics camps, he was there to help in any way he could. In the spirit of gracious professionalism he mentored and inspired the future "rivals" of his own team.

Cameron works tirelessly to promote the FIRST philosophy using every opportunity he gets to tell those he meets about the way FIRST is changing the lives of students and the face of science and engineering. But Cameron is not one to just talk about the FIRST philosophy—he sincerely lives it out. In the essential spirit of FIRST, he uses his talents and time to make the lives of others better. Since he was 8 years old, Cameron has been involved in working for a local food pantry and volunteering for the Special Olympics in Lee's Summit. When he joined the Broncobots, one of the first things he did was to enlist the help of the team to work with the Special Olympics. Three years later, it is a favorite service project of all of the team members.

Before the build season began this year, Cameron led the team in moving the entire build site to a new location. He spent hours packing, unpacking, and arranging the new shop to get it ready for the build season. Even though Cameron is graduating this year, he wants to continue helping the team. He has committed to packing, unpacking, and arranging a shop again at the end of this year's build season when the team will be moving to yet another build site.

During the build season, Cameron is the head of the build team. He commits himself to working with younger, inexperienced team members to teach them how to use the machinery. He knows how to use everything in the shop, and where every part is. He is an expert at prototyping and fabricating parts. More than once, he has found a creative solution to an engineering problem that stood in the way of progress on the robot. Whenever there is a question about the robot, Cameron is the go-to person.

When Cameron does not know, he seeks to find the answer. He works with engineering mentors, asking for their guidance when approaching something he may be unsure of. In this way he leads by example, showing other students asking questions and expanding upon the answers leads to success. If a newer or less experienced member of the team asks Cameron for his advice on something he willingly and cheerfully assists him or her with whatever they are struggling with. As team captain, he works hard to check in with each sub-team to help track their progress and push them forward to be successful in meeting their deadlines.

Cameron's devotion to FIRST is extravagant. After totaling his car a week before ship date in a no fault accident on his birthday, he showed up with a smile on his face and a bump on his head, ready to work on the robot. This dedicated spirit is what makes Cameron T. an excellent role model of the FIRST community; his unfailing enthusiasm for robotics inspires everyone he comes in contact with. Whether rain or shine, Cameron is ready to learn and give everything that he can.