2024 Executive Summary

Describe the impact of the FIRST program on team participants within the last 3 years. This can include but is not limited to percentages of those graduating high school, attending college, in STEM careers, and in FIRST programs as mentors/sponsors.

Team 1403 has a respected name within Montgomery High School. Rather than a club, we’re recognized as a competitive team, complete with bus funding and varsity letters to support our team members. In the last 3 years, our team’s graduation rate has remained at 100%, with 90% pursuing a STEM degree, compared to our school’s graduation rate of 93%. Over 4 members have returned to mentor the team, and we stay in contact with other alumni through our monthly newsletters providing team updates.

Describe your community along with how your team addresses its unique opportunities and circumstances.

Montgomery is a 32-square mile township, located in the “STEM Basket” of NJ with about 10 FRC teams in a 10 mile radius. For the past 18 years, we’ve expanded our reach by inviting almost 40 teams to our annual Kickoff event and further connected through the past 7 years at our FMA Montgomery District Event, hosted by 1403, fostering a supportive network encouraging shared resources and expertise. By actively hosting collaborative initiatives, our team aims to strengthen the STEM network in NJ.

Describe the team’s methods, with emphasis on the past 3 years, for spreading the FIRST message in ways that are effective, scalable, sustainable, and creative. How does your team measure results?

We promote innovation and collaboration among the youth by mentoring FLL teams and running a summer program for grades 3-8. 1403 also sparks a sense of discovery and fun in children through our participation at school events like science fairs, and the presentation of our annual Halloween themed robot at our township’s Trunk-or-Treat event. Finally, we strive to impact the community through volunteering initiatives, notably our Earth Day cleanup of over 95 hours across 15 members annually.

Please provide specific examples of how your team members act as role models within the FIRST community with emphasis on the past 3 years. 

In 2017, Team 1403 assisted in founding The Compass Alliance (TCA)—an online consortium of teams around the globe focused on the accessibility of FIRST resources. We created 62 Pathways (52 written and 10 videos); step-by-step resources on specific FRC topics. Our members help run the TCA call center—a 24/7 hub for teams to ask questions. At competitions, we offer a Service Station to provide aid from extra parts to robot rewiring, last year assisting 9 teams across 3 events. 

Describe your team’s initiatives to Assist, Mentor, and/or Start other FIRST teams with emphasis on activities within the past 3 years.

This season we began Cub Classes, an initiative inspired by our Cougar Classes. We invited 16 FLL students from our middle school to a presentation about organization and an engineering challenge to build a popsicle-stick bridge. We will continue these sessions monthly, inviting students outside of the FLL team to join. Last year we refurbished old robots for 3 rookie FRC teams, including 9015 Questionable Engineering. They proceeded to compete in the World Championship with our drivebase!

Beyond starting teams, what initiatives have you done to help inspire young people to be science and technology leaders and innovators? What results have you seen from your efforts in the past 3 years?

For the past 14 years, our team has consistently mentored SOAR summer camps within our district and also mentored our district’s FLL teams, 26361 Roboclaws and 26362 Thundercats, for 8 years, volunteering over 201 hours this year alone. Through these programs, students are inspired to continue their path in STEM. Prior to joining our team,  approximately 70% of our members have participated in our programs, demonstrating the pipeline to STEM that we have created within our district.  

Describe the partnerships you’ve created with other organizations (teams, sponsors, educational institutions, philanthropic entities, etc.) and what you have accomplished together with emphasis on the past 3 years.

Team 1403 maintains a strong relationship with various sponsors, from our Montgomery Board of Education to pharmaceutical organizations like Bristol Myers Squibb and tech companies like Google, providing our members with unmatched financial resources and strategic expertise. In the past 3 years, we’ve partnered with our local Montgomery Food Pantry to donate over 1,400 items for the underprivileged in our community for our team’s annual toiletry drive, totalling over 4,400 in the past 9 years.

Describe your team’s efforts in the past 3 years to promote equity, diversity, and inclusion within your team, FIRST, and your communities.

Team 1403 emphasizes inclusivity with our Women in STEM event, illuminating their journey and challenges. We believe in accessible education for all and mentor at the Rock Brook school for students with special needs and our Summer VEX Coding Camp with MSEPTA. Last season, we created ramps for FMA competitions, allowing drive team members in wheelchairs to see over the driver’s station. Our annual Culture Cougar Class fosters appreciation for the diverse cultures within our community. 

Explain how you ensure your team and the initiatives you have created will continue to run effectively for the foreseeable future.

Team 1403 meticulously documents all procedures, allowing us to remain sustainable. Whether it be our AutoCAD design packets or our Sensors & Pneumatics presentations, our resources are all outlined on our website for easy access. For new members, our Big Cougar Little Cougar initiative fosters friendships between new and returning members, enabling team members to stay connected.  We also use Job Position Outlines and leadership training to prepare the next generation of leadership.

Describe your team’s innovative strategies to recruit, retain, and engage your sponsors within the past 3 years.

Our team creates a sponsor packet to engage potential sponsors, informing over 100 parents on team activities and outreach. Every year, the team holds a Parent Informational Night to inform parents of how our team works and how they can support the team. In distributing our sponsor packet, we invite parents to help the team through donations and bringing in possible sponsors. Our members also attend sponsor events, such as Picatinny Arsenal’s Women in STEM night and their facility tour.

Highlight one area in which your team needs to improve and describe the steps actively being taken to make those improvements.  

Reaching our 20th year in FIRST, our team wishes our head mentor Mr. Leicht a happy retirement after 18 years of treasured guidance. His influence and guidance has shaped our team profoundly, leading us through numerous ups and downs. A change in management and leadership will bring obstacles such as the transferring of resources and skills. We’ve been working hard to digitize standards and critical processes for the next generation of 1403 leaders to ensure a smooth transition between seasons.

Describe your team’s goals to fulfill the mission of FIRST and the progress you have made towards those goals.

Team 1403 progresses towards fulfilling the message of FIRST by working directly with our community to enhance STEM accessibility. Through mentoring FLL teams, conducting workshops, or working with the special needs community, we use our resources to create enriching and memorable experiences that impact every student’s educational journey. Whether through experience with industrial-grade equipment or collaboration of ideas at Cougar Classes, Team 1403 works to prioritize the mission of FIRST. 

Briefly describe other matters of interest to the FIRST Judges, including items that may not fit into the above topics. The judges are interested in learning about aspects of your team that may be unique or particularly noteworthy.

With over 10% of our school represented on Team 1403, our collective influence extends beyond just participation. For example, our A/V subteam dedicated 77 hours creating a video tour of the layout of our high school as a comprehensive resource for incoming freshmen and local law enforcement. Our longstanding commitment to the betterment of our community has shown throughout the years, being recognized as a Varsity team, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with other varsity sports in our school.