History

Team Beginnings (2011-2013)

Transition from "Club" to "Course" (2013-2014)

After two seasons of competition, the club advisor at the time, Dan Boles, proposed to Oak Hills administration that the students would be best served if they had a bell within the school day to conduct their work. School and district administration agreed, and the Scotbot was taken to the next level. Here is the description given in the course proposal - outlining the essence of what the Scotbot wanted to become.

Scotbot4284 is designed to inspire young people to pursue careers in science and technology; and equip them to become confident, responsible, productive citizens prepared to make a meaningful contribution in the world and motivated to improve the lives of those less advantaged than themselves using a unique learning experience in an environment that is fun and fosters creativity. The overarching goal of the course is to create a robot that will successfully navigate the challenges presented in FIRST Robotics competitions. Students will be involved in design, fabrication, leadership, marketing, publications, public relations, business, CAD, scouting, and animation projects as they develop their skills and have fun. In the fall when school starts, team members will attend several training sessions in their area of interest with students and professional mentors providing training as they hone their existing skills. We will also be commencing some year-round activities with the Business and Marketing teams. For example: marketing our team to potential sponsors, seeking out professional mentors, robot demonstrations, team building events, and developing animations for use in presentations. The robot build season starts in January and activity around the robot increases, culminating in the spring when we attend tournaments where we compete with teams from around the country and world. Traveling to the competitions is a privilege earned through hard work and commitment to the team. We understand that circumstances may arise that create a conflict; however, students are strongly encouraged to make every effort to earn the opportunity to travel as this is a rewarding, exciting fun experience – perhaps the best part of FIRST. This team requires a strong individual commitment, so please only enroll if you are seriously curious and willing to work.

It is undeniable the impact being on a FIRST robotics team will have on a student's profile for college admission and future success. Brandeis University did a study on the impact of FIRST robotics, and they concluded that FIRST alumni (when compared to peers with similar math/science backgrounds):

• got into the college of their choice 88% of the time, while their peer group was accepted only at a 53% rate
• were 10 times more likely to get the co-op or internship of their choice after their freshman year
• twice as likely to study engineering in college
• four times as likely to get hired as an engineer after college