Community Involvement
Speaking with Society of Manufacturing Engineers Members
Team Duct Tape is active in both our immediate neighborhood community, as well as our FIRST community, year round. Our outreach programs are aimed at
- Informing the general public about FIRST robotics,
- Coordinating cooperative training and practice opportunities with other area teams;
- Promoting interest and engagement in science, math and technology to area youth, and
- Encouraging business and professional community involvement in mentoring and coaching .
Outreach in 2010
FIRST Outreach at Bay Area Renaissance Festival
Upcoming: IEEE-RAS (Robotics and Automation Society) visit - March 17 & April 20
Upcoming: FTC Demos @ FRC Regional, Orlando - March 13
Bay Area Renaissance Festival - Enjoyed FIRST outreach at Inventors Weekend again, Feb. 20
Lockheed Martin Engineering Week event - Feb. 17
TEDxTampa Bay - Volunteering at the first Tampa Bay TED Talks-style Big Ideas conference, Feb. 12
Outreach in 2009
Studio 10 Morning Show for Science Center of Pinellas FTC tournament-Dec. 21
FIRST Lego League Tournament volunteering - December 12
Society of Manufacturing Engineers Presentation and Demo, October
FIRST LEGO League team mentoring - TechnoForceand Brick Buddies
LIFE Fest 2009 Celebration of Learning Conference, Eckerd College, Sept. 26
Tempest ‘n’ Tampa, University of South Florida at the Sun Dome, Oct. 23-24
Helping out at Sypris Electronics Innovation Day
ProEngineer Training - May 2009
Sharing CAD training opportunities with other area teams throughout May.
FLL Summer Camp and Mentoring - June 2009
We hosted two low-cost FIRST LEGO League community summer camps, with plans to provide long term mentoring to teams that may arise from the camp experience. We cappped off the learning experience by hosting an FLL mini-tournament and FIRST Open House, open to the public, at a local Tampa library, receiving coverage by the Tampa Tribune and Fox 13 News.
As of July 2009, one new team comprised of students who attended our camps registered with FIRST LEGO League for the 2009-10 season: FLL Team 3519. We’re looking forward to mentoring Team 3519 through a successful rookie year!
PTC Users World Event - June 2009
Team Duct Tape provided game demonstrations, and information outreach about FIRST, and mentoring and coaching opportunities to conference attendees throughout this three day event.
Enjoying our clockwork demo
Tampa Bay Area Renaissance Festival Inventor’s Weekend - March 2009
We spent two days demonstrating our robot and informing event goers about FIRST opportunities for both youth and mentors.
Tampa Bay Engineering Banquet - February 2009
Informed area engineers about mentoring and coaching opportunities in FIRST robotics during this annual dinner and conference.
Sypris Electronics Innovation Day - February 2009
We helped bring an FLL mini-tournament experience to Sypris Electronics engineers, incorporating FIRST team building and problem solving techniques at the corporate level.
National Education Television Association Conference - January 2009
Team Duct Tape provided outreach and information to Public Broadcasting executives, programmers, and marketers at this annual education television conference. In coordination with FIRST President Paul Gudonis, we demonstrated the Face Off! Challenge and spoke with conference attendees about FIRST robotics.
In 2008, our Rookie year, we provided outreach at:
Tempest in Tampa - October 2008
Provided information and outreach about FIRST Tech Challenge at this annual off-season robotics showcase event
LIFE Fest 2008 Home and Alternative Learners Conference - September 2008
Provided general community outreach to event goers, informing families about FIRST robotics opportunities.
Ongoing Outreach:
Mentoring
We provide mentoring to FLL teams Brick Buddies and TechnoForce in the Odessa area.
Team Duct Tape website
We regularly post information not only about FIRST but about science, math and technology news and information, including scholarships and information specifically pertaining to reaching girls interested in engineering and science programs.
