It would be misleading to state that the Becker Robotics Team was on its spring break this past week; when school was decreed out of session on Thursday, team members commenced final competition preparations for the 2015 North Star Regional event April 1 through April 4 on the U. of M. campus.
At the competition, the Coalition of Independent Students (CIS) unfortunately did not experience the same success as it enjoyed in its past two showings due to initial mishaps with connectivity to the field management system. The pit crew eagerly tackled these issues, effectively troubleshooting to get CIS's robot, named “Briar Rose,” up-and-running in time for the ninth qualification match.
Despite the disappointment, CIS's showing at North Star proved to be beneficial in that it provided team members with the important, but rough, insight into the challenges paralleled in the Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields.
Another important, and often overlooked, benefit of CIS's regional performance is that the unsung heroes on the team, the business and marketing divisions, were placed in the spotlight. This season, the team was able to submit for both the Entrepreneurship Award and the Chairman's Award, the latter considered one of the most prestigious accomplishments in the FIRST Robotics program.
With these award submissions, the team was able to share with the 60 attending teams, the panel of judges, event volunteers, community members, and family members the impact it has been able to make in its three-year existence.
Some of its proudest outreach events are its annual community pancake event, where the team invites the community and other FRC teams to congregate over breakfast in celebration on FRC's Challenge Kick-off Day and attend student-led training sessions; the summer robotics engineering exploration camps the team offers through Community Education for younger students in grades 3-8, and its involvement in community-wide events that include the Becker Business Expo and Freedom Days.
People were utterly amazed at the vast impact they can already claim as a relatively young team. This being said, CIS is proud to have been awarded the 2015 Team Spirit Award, which "celebrates extraordinary enthusiasm and spirit through exceptional partnership and teamwork furthering the objectives of FIRST."
CIS would like to congratulate the North Star Regional Champions, Wave Robotics, The Errors, and No Mythic on their outstanding performances, as well as sending a colossal “Thank You” to our sponsors (Xcel, LPI and the Clear Lake Lion’s Club, to name a few), community members, the “nerd herd” of returning alumni, and our parents.
Team Captain Jacob Charbonneau summed it up: "It is undoubtedly disappointing to not have as good of a showing as we know we are capable of this season, especially with this being my senior year. However, I am beyond proud of the immense showing of dedication that has been depicted by so many of my teammates, and I am already looking forward to coming back to don a CIS shirt next year as a mentor."
