January 6, 2018 Kickoff at St.Martins Univ in Lacey

Watch the 2018 Game Animation on YouTube
If you miss the live broadcast, do a YouTube search for "2018 FRC Game Animation".
Watch the Live Kickoff Broadcast 7:30AM in your bunny slippers
You can stream the Kickoff Broadcast through Twitch. Please visit the Kickoff Broadcast page before 7AM Saturday to make sure that you will be able to access the live stream and troubleshoot any issues ahead of time.
Download encrypted game manual. It is posted on the Game and Season page. The Encryption code will be available on Saturday, January 6 at the end of the Kickoff broadcast. You may want to download those documents now so you will be ready when the time comes!
Team Watches Event Live at St.Martins University
Team 5295 will discover the game objectives of the 2018 game PowerUp on Saturday 1-6-2018 at the Norman Worthington Conference Center (NWCC), Building 9.  Address: St Martins University Campus, 5300 Pacific Ave SE, Lacey WA 98503 map    Use N O P Q parking lots 
SMU FRC 2018 Kickoff all info on 1 page

5:15AM Meet at Shelton High near Student Union Building (S.U.B.).
Transport, Sign-Up & Agenda
5:30AM Depart in a district bus (thanks Coach Clarey!).
6:15AM Arrive St.Martin's University.
6:30AM Doors open. Norman Worthington Conference Center (NWCC), Building 9 Campus Map
7:00AM Official Start: warm-up videos and talks.
7:30AM PowerUp game animation reveal from New Hampshire.
For complete schedule see Transport, Sign-Up & Agenda
12 NOON Bus departs for Shelton High School.
Afternoon at robot shop: lunch, read rules, walk-thru & brainstorm.
7:00PM  Kickoff complete.  

Apple Engineering Technology Camp July 9-August 3, 2018

FIRST is happy to announce that, through our partnership with Apple, we have been asked to nominate FIRST Participants for the 2018 Apple Engineering Technology Camp.

This is a one month, all expenses (including travel) camp held at Apple headquarters in Cupertino, California. FIRST, along with other nonprofit partners, can nominate students with an exceptional interest in technology and software or hardware engineering to attend the camp.

To apply for a nomination:

• Students must complete an application by January 5, 2018.
• Selected students from this pool will then be invited to apply directly with Apple in mid-January.

If you need help with the application, contact FirstRoboticsCompetition@FIRSTinspires.org or phone 1-800-871-8326.

FRC Workshop Training Posted; Add Your Notes

Notes from recent FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) Workshops have been posted to our [09 Training + FRC Workshops] folder.  Topics include: Setting Team Goals; Intakes, Arms, Lifts & Launchers; Engineering Design Process; and Design & Competition Strategy. This information comes from the Tacoma November 18th workshops sponsored by Team 2557 SOTAbots and the Everett November 11th workshops sponsored by Team 4512 BEARbots.   Feel free to add your notes to this folder.

Grants Pay $10,866 Pacific Northwest Entry Fee

$3,866 OSPI: Thank You P.Cusack;
$3,000 Boeing: Thank You A.Walker;
$2,000 F5 Networks: Thank You E.McCallum;
$1,000 FIRST Washington: Thank You E.McCallum;
$1,000 Integral Fellow Award Grant: Thank You K.Ross and Microsoft.

Our Pacific Northwest (PNW) District 2018 entry fee pays for our Kit of Parts, two district competitions, the PNW District Championship & staff.

Give Local ends on Wednesday, December 13 at 11:59pm

Wednesday is Giving Bonus Wednesday.  Five donors who donate $25 or more on Wednesday will randomly be drawn and another $100 each will be given to their recipient.  Team 5295 in Shelton received $5585 from 8 donors!  As of Dec.12, Give Local has received 614 donations totaling $96,711. That does not include the $40,000 match from the Dawkins Charitable Trust.   

Booster Club Meets Thursday Dec.14 5-6PM

Goal: support our youth's hands-on apprenticeship of marketing and robotics. We meet again in room 808.  Press the red text to follow the link & see content.
12/14 Agenda   11/30 Minutes

$50 Million in FIRST Scholarships for Juniors & Seniors

$50 Million FIRST Scholarships
 

Washington State Opportunity Scholarship (1:13) YOUTUBE video
This one has a minimum payout of $22,500.  In past years, not all the grant funds were distributed.  The application window is January 2 to February 28, 2018.  Yikes!  Kickoff is January 6th.  http://waopportunityscholarship.org/ 

Give Local Raises $5585 of $7000 Goal; 5 Days Remain

December 8, 2017---Shelton, Washington---Give Local South Puget Sound so far has raised $5585 of our $7000 goal.  One hundred percent of your gift supports Team 5295 "Aldernating Current" and helps qualify us for a match of up to $5,000 from the Dawkins Charitable Trust. 

You can Give Local until Wednesday, December 13th, the last day of the campaign.  On that day, the Community Foundation will draw 5 names from all online donations of $25 or more made on that day through the Give Local online giving platform. The winners will receive $100 to spend on the Give Local nonprofit of their choice!

From November 21 through December 13 Team 5295 "Aldernating Current" is joining more than 40 nonprofits in raising money to help make the South Puget Sound a stronger, more vibrant community for all.

Volunteer at Local FTC or FLL Competitions

Sign-up to volunteer here    Here is where local teams will compete.

Saturday Dec.16  FIRST Technical Challenge  7AM-6:30PM  Schedule
Amazon Doppler Bldg., 2021 7th Ave (Westlake Ave), Seattle, WA 98121
Shelton's Oakland Bay Jr High Team 7999 "T-Wolves" compete.

Saturday Dec.16  FIRST Technical Challenge  7AM-6:30PM  Schedule
Baker Middle School, 8320 South I Street, Tacoma WA 98405
Our sister Westport 4-H Team 11121 "Fishy Business Inc." competes.

Shelton High will not transport volunteers to Dec9-10 competitions.

Sunday Dec.10 FIRST Lego League  7AM-5PM  Schedule
Washington Middle School, 3100 Cain Road SE, Olympia WA 98501
Shelton's Olympic Middle School Team 3238 "Cyber Doughnuts" compete.

Saturday  Dec.9   FIRST Lego League  7AM-5PM  Schedule
Washington Middle School, 3100 Cain Road SE, Olympia WA 98501
Shelton's Olympic Middle School Team 36147 "Robotic Eagles" compete.

For Volunteer Opportunities, go to www.firstinspires.org. Create an account.  There are buttons to volunteer for an event and filters to select programs, locations, and a date range. 

Booster: Give Local Crowdfunding Campaign Starts

November 21, 2017---Shelton, Washington---Give Local South Puget Sound is hosted by the Community Foundation of South Puget Sound to support nonprofits across Thurston, Mason, and Lewis Counties.

Participating nonprofit organizations have received a grant from the Foundation to help fund a specific project or provide general support of their program. The grant only provides a portion of the funding toward their goal, but through Give Local we will ask the community to help them reach it.

The Dawkins Charitable Trust has pledged a generous $40,000 matching grant so donors will have extra incentives to Give Local. The Community Foundation is covering the credit card fees so that 100% of donations raised via Give Local will be passed along to your organization.

The Community Foundation distributes more than $400,000 annually through their Community Grants, but this year received $967,000 in grant requests.

WADEC Agrees to Host Practice Facility

November 20, 2017---Shelton, Washington---Washington Driver Education Center agreed to let the 4-H Shelton High Robotics Team 5295 "Aldernating Current" practice their 2018 competition robot at their facility February 10-20, 2018.

November 18: Boosters Raise $400 at Silent Auction

Elks Lodge #2467, Shelton, Washington---Parents and volunteers sold chicken alfredo dinners, raffled off and auctioned community donated items at the festive event.

October 28: 4-H Robotics Team Competes at Girls Generation

Maple Valley, Washington---Our 4-H Robotics Team placed 18th of 36 teams at an unofficial replay of the 2017 game STEAMworks.  Team 2046 "Bear Metal" sponsors Girls Generation which features all-girl drive teams.

4-H Robotics Team Members Receive 4-H Fall Fair Awards

Shelton Civic Center, Shelton, Washington---Teammates received a variety of awards at the 4-H Fall Fair and Ice Cream Social on Wednesday, October 25th.  The Shelton Chamber of Commerce helped publicized the event which featured youth groups of Mason County 4-H.

October 21: 4-H Robotics Team Displays at Gaming Event

Seattle, Washington---Four students and a volunteer displayed team colors and 2017 competition robot "Juniper" at Century Link Event Center.  Gaming Experimental Entertainment sponsor Inspirus is donating $250 to the ten FIRST Robotic Competition high school teams that assisted in this visibility event.

October 13: 4-H Robotics Team Displays at 4-H Paper Clover

Shelton, Washington---The 4-H Robotics Team showed off their 2017 competition robot "Juniper" at Tractor Supply Company, formerly Del's Feed and Farm Supply.  This was part of 4-H Mason County's fall Paper Clover event highlighting 4-H youth groups.

Students Cook Crepes at Skookum Rotary's OysterFest

Sanderson Field, Shelton, Washington---Twenty-eight students, family members, volunteers, and friends cooked crepes at OysterFest this weekend to raise funds for their coming 2018 season.

September 30: Students Staff Bike Relay Race for $1000

Olympia, Washington---Twenty-nine students, family members, volunteers, and friends staffed the starting line of Hood to Coast's "Reach the Beach" bike race to the Pacific Ocean.

September 21: Sixteen Students Visit Team 5295 Open House

Shelton, Washington---After viewing some exciting videos, the visiting Highclimbers were handed safety glasses and pizza, and watched "Juniper", the team's 2017 robot that competed at the 2017 World Championship last April.

Team 5295 Recruits at Oakland Bay Jr High Orientation

Shelton, Washington---Three students from Team 5295 spoke to Ms. Ochoa's 8th grade and Mr. Stokely's robotics classes at new student orientation Thursday, August 31st.

August 28: Team 5295 Recruits at Climber Day

Shelton, Washington---Three teammates spoke to incoming sophomores at Shelton High School's Climber Day orientation for new students.

August 19: 4-H Teaches Computer-Aided-Design at PUD3

Shelton WA---4-H volunteer D.Rankin taught Onshape Computer-Aided-Design (CAD) to seven teammates of the 4-H Robotics Team.

4-H Robotics Team Learns Autodesk Synthesis Software

Kent, Washington---Teammates of the 4-H Robotics Team had fun with Synthesis software at the FIRST Washington Fieldhouse in Kent on Thursday, August 10th.

Students Raise $1200 at August OCCU Car Washes

The Shelton High Robotics Team washed cars from 10AM to 3PM on August 5th and August 12th at Our Community Credit Union to raise fund for their coming season.

Shelton High Robotics Team Finishes in Top 6% at World Championship

Turnaround from Near Last in 2016 to Loss in Quarterfinals to Eventual Runner-Up

Houston,Texas  April 24,2017---Competing as 4-H FRC Team 5295 “Aldernating Current”, the Shelton High Robotics Team partnered with teams from China, Israel, Turkey and USA during the Newton Division qualification rounds and finished ranked 16th of 67 teams at the Houston FIRST Robotics World Championship April 20-22. This placed them in the top 5.6% of the 3400 teams competing in 2017. In 2016 the Shelton team finished near last at competitions. Watch matches at https://www.thebluealliance.com/team/5295. The team lost in the Newton quarterfinals to the #1 playoff alliance led by local NASA Team 118 “Robonauts”, which finished 2nd overall in the 400 team competition. 

On April 23rd the Shelton High Robotics Team visited the robot pit of NASA Team 118 “Robonauts” which is used by NASA employees during the day and the robotics team in the evening. Shelton High Robotics Team members shook hands with a robonaut, a multi-million dollar joint NASA and General Motors effort to design a human-sized robot assistant for astronauts in space.  Robonaut Program Manager Julia Badger said “Things break all the time.” The team toured Space Center Houston and learned of NASA’s plans to send humans to Mars on the Orion spaceship. A Tumwater High School classmate of KMAS’ Jeff Slakey, Nujoud Merancy, shared samples of the materials NASA will use to build the Orion spaceship and the food the first humans to Mars will eat enroute.

Team Captain junior Jaeden H, seniors Jacob H. and Kiery E., and sophomores Abbie A., Carolynn C., Dylan R., Kirstin G., Robert G-A., and Tristin N. were guided by Coach J.Wright, R.Clarey, K.Hansen, A.Hospador, F.Newby, and A.Walker.

The Shelton High Robotics Team raised $20,000 in cash and pledges of the $28,000 needed. Students will run concessions on 4/26 at the Highclimber stadium softball game. Planned fundraisers are 5/19 “Change the World” and 6/03 “Hood to Coast”. Dates for car washes are pending. Donate at http://frcteam5295aldernatingcurrent.blogspot.com/search/label/Donate

or contact Andy Hospador 360-426-0741; AndyH3626@gmail.com or AlanWalker@earthlink.net 253-852-4002.

Team representatives will visit the Shelton Kiwanis May 9th and the “Olympia Robotics Federation” Annual Sponsor Appreciation Event May 12th. You can meet the full team on May 20th at the Lacey STEM Fair or June 3rd at the Forest Festival Paul Bunyan Parade. See the team schedule and watch interviews at https://www.facebook.com/AldernatingCurrent5295.

Radical Media won the Will.I.Am “Make It Loud” Award for “This Isn’t A Robot”, a two minute YouTube video. “But this isn’t a robot. It’s a machine to build the people who will change the world”.

The all west winning alliance include Ballard Washington Team 2928 “Viking Robotics”, Tucson Arizona Team 1011 “Crush”, Atascadero California Team 973 “Greybots”, and Berkeley California Team 5499 “Bay Orangutans”.

FIRST WASHINGTON PAYS AIRFARE

Shelton High Robotics Team Will Reimburse

Since fundraising did not cover expenses prior to the departure, FIRST WASHINGTON [Robotics] purchased airfare tickets for the Shelton High Robotics Team.  The team is grateful for this help with their cash flow and will continue fundraising activities.

FIRST WASHINGTON inspires Washington State youth by engaging them in exciting mentor-based FIRST programs that build science, technology and engineering skills, inspire innovation, and foster well-rounded life capabilities such as self-confidence, communication, and leadership. FIRST WASHINGTON organized nine district high school competitions and the Pacific Northwest Championship.  FIRST WASHINGTON  also conducts competitions for FIRST Tech Challenge (7th-12thgrades), FIRST Lego League (4th-8th), and Junior FIRST Lego League (K-3).

SHELTON HIGH ROBOTICS TEAM HEADS TO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

Team Needs $9000 More to Reach $28,000 Goal

Shelton WA, April 17, 2017– Team 5295 will compete at the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) World Championship April 20-22 in Houston.  Costs are higher than anticipated: $5000 Entry Fee, $11000 Air Travel, $9000 Hotel, $1400 Food and $900 Car rentals.  Donate at http://frcteam5295aldernatingcurrent.blogspot.com/search/label/Donate or send fund-raising ideas to Andy Hospador (360-426-0741; AndyH3626@gmail.com), or AlanWalker@earthlink.net (253-852-4002).

Team sponsor DragonflyMediaNW.com created exciting video highlights of the Shelton High Robotics Team.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWWoZDRY91c.

Watch the April 20–22 World Championship at https://www.firstchampionship.org/watch-live. Finished matches are posted at https://www.thebluealliance.com/team/5295. The Shelton High Robotics Team competes as Team 5295 in the Newton division against teams from Brazil, China, Israel, Mexico, Turkey, and the United States.

There will be 400 FRC teams competing in six divisions named for famous scientists: Carver, Galileo, Hopper, Newton, Roebling and Turing.  The division winners play the finals Saturday April 22^nd on the Einstein field.

After the competition, on Sunday April 23^rd the Team will tour NASA Johnson Space Center with a woman space scientist arranged by Jeff Slakey of KMAS & iFiberOne.

FIRST™ Robotics was started in 1989 by inventor Dean Kamen to make science a sport.  Kids have so much fun they do not realize they are learning how to solve problems via critical thinking.

In Mason County, there are FIRST Lego League robotics teams at Olympia Middle (6-7) and Pioneer (4-8) Schools for the grades indicated.

Students competing at the World Championships are team captain Jaeden H., Abbie A., Carolynn C., Dylan R., Kiery E., Jacob H., Kirstin G., Robert G.-A., and Tristin N.  The adults attending are Coach J.Wright, A.Walker, A.Hospador, F.Newby, K.Hansen and R.Clarey.

See the latest team news at https://www.facebook.com/AldernatingCurrent5295.