Integrating First-Year Mentors into a Veteran FRC Team
Presenter: Firat Taxpulat and Patrick Brophy, Team 5012: Gryffingear
Join us as we explore the integration of first-year mentors into a veteran FRC team. This presentation offers insights from dual perspectives. From a first-year mentor perspective, we discuss initial expectations, navigating team dynamics, earning student buy-in, and learning existing processes. Insights include effective delegation, guiding students through challenges, and critical timing for mentor involvement. From a veteran mentor viewpoint, we’ll cover recruitment of first-year mentors, setting clear goals for their involvement, and fostering a collaborative environment. Use these lessons learned in optimizing the first-year mentor experience for a seasoned FRC team to ensure smooth integration of rookie mentors in your own FRC teams.
About Firat and Patrick
Firat Taxpulat is the lead computer vision mentor for Team 5012: Gryffingear at The Palmdale Aerospace Academy in Palmdale, CA. Additionally, Firat is a senior software engineer at Lockheed Martin where he works on air vehicle software. As a longtime resident of Palmdale, Firat joined FIRST to provide quality STEM instruction for Palmdale high school students. Combining his passion for engineering and civic duty for his hometown, Firat enjoys assisting students with developing computer vision software and ultimately instilling a love for engineering within his community’s youth.
Patrick Brophy started his involvement with FIRST in 2011 during his tenure as a first-time teacher when he was asked by his school to run the robotics team. Since then, he’s been a mentor for a few FRC teams, event volunteer, tournament host, and serves as a Program Delivery Partner for SoCalFTC. As a teacher, Patrick was a founding mentor of Team 5012: Gryffingear at The Palmdale Aerospace Academy in Palmdale, CA. Patrick is currently a software engineer at Lockheed Martin, but he still volunteers to lead the robotics program at his former school.