Resources
The following resources are a collaboration of the members of NEMO unless otherwise noted. You may provide links to them or re-publish them as long as credit is given to NEMO or to the authors. If you have suggestions for additional white papers, please contact us.Dean's Homework
- Hints for Contacting Your Elected Officials (PDF: 1p., 36K)
NEMO
- NEMO Flyer (PDF: 1p., 35K)
- NEMO Business Cards Template (MS Word: 1p., 197K)
- NEMO Information Business Cards (MS Word: 1p., 85K)
Rookies
- 18 Hints for Rookie Teams (PDF: 2pp., 47K)
- Don't Panic (PDF: 1p., 24K) New!
Competitions
- 101 Things I Wish I'd Known Before My First FIRST Competition (PDF: 4pp., 111K) New!
- 18 Tips for in the Pits (PDF: 2pp., 40K)
- 30 Tips for 2007 - Checklist for FRC Post-ship/Pre-competition (PDF: 2pp., 43K)
- Competition Tips/What to Expect (PDF: 3pp., 23K)
Anne Bergeron, engineer and FIRST mentor - Electrical Tips Handout (PDF: 1pp., 16K)
Anne Bergeron, engineer and FIRST mentor - FIRST LEGO League World Festival (PDF: 4pp., 42K)
- Inspection Tips (PDF: 1pp., 12K)
Anne Bergeron, engineer and FIRST mentor - Jobs at Competitions (PDF: 3pp., 32K)
- Judging Hints at the Regionals (PDF: 2pp., 33K)
- Mechanical Tips Handout (PDF: 1pp., 16K)
Anne Bergeron, engineer and FIRST mentor - Questions to Consider When Choosing Your FIRST Event(s) (PDF: 2pp., 41K)
Parents and Mentors
- 101 Ways Parents can Help a FIRST Team (PDF: 2pp., 39K)
- A Mentor Is... (PDF: 12pp., 42K)
- Memorandum of Understanding (PDF: 2pp., 25K)
- Recruiting and Retaining Mentors (PDF: 11pp., 32K)
- Thank Your Mentor Day Handout (PDF: 1p., 145K)
Jenny Beatty
Publicity and Media
- Marketing Our Competitions, a customizable business card template used to advertise upcoming competitions (MS Word: 2pp., 54K)
- Publicity FIRST Manual (PDF: 29pp., 296K)
- Publicity Tips (PDF: 2pp., 29K)
Scholarships
Sponsors and Fundraisers
- 25 Ways Sponsors Can Help Your Team (PDF: 1p., 11K)
- Creating a Killer Team Packet (PDF: 3pp., 119K)
- How to Host a Profitable Pancake Breakfast Fundraiser (PDF: 2pp., 27K)
- How to Host a Profitable Pasta Dinner Fundraiser (PDF: 2pp., 26K)
- Invoice to Give to Sponsors (PDF: 1p., 31K)
FRC team 60 - Request to Sponsor Letter (PDF: 1p., 258K)
FRC team 1293
Students
- Recruiting New Students to Your FIRST Robotics Competition or FIRST Tech Challenge Team (PDF: 2pp., 32K) New!
Team Organization
- 501(c)3 Nonprofit Status: What is it, do we need it, and how do we get it? (MS PPT: 200K), Addendum (MS Word: 25K)
Carol Perrotto, William Enslen, FRC Team 365 (Addendum) - Team Organization Tips (PDF: 2pp., 22K)
Anne Bergeron, engineer and FIRST mentor
Travel
- Choosing a Hotel (PDF: 2pp., 33K)
- Tips for Travel (PDF: 2pp., 31K)
FIRST Robotics Competition Program
- 2007 FIRST Guidelines, Tips, & Good Practices (PDF: 38pp., 1.3M)
- FRC Team Handbook
- Give the Chairman's Award Judges a Brain Tattoo (MS PPT: 1.4M),
Handout, (MS PPT: 115K)
Walt Hickock, FRC Team 67
FIRST Vex Challenge Program
- Vex for the Technically Challenged (PDF: 28pp., 1.26M)
Miscellaneous documents
- "All I Ever Needed to Know I Learned in FIRST" poster (PDF: 1p., 67K)
- Communicating with the Community (MS PPT: 684K) (Includes press release template from Marian Murphy, FIRST Communications Manager) New!
Kathie Kentfield, Director, NEMO. View in Notes format - Communicating with Your Team (MS PPT: 965K)
Kathie Kentfield, Director, NEMO. View in Notes format - Diversifying FIRST: A Case Study (MS PPT: 17M)
Karen Sullivan, Education Coordinator, FIRST; Kristen Kelso, RCU Founder, FRC Team 131 - FRC 2009: Road Map to Useful Links (PDF: 95K) New!
Mark-Team 1189; Mark-Team 358; Michelle, George-Team 812; Jenny; Kathie and Nancy-Team 1261 - How to Host a FIRST Workshop Day (MS PPT: 4.5M)
Nancy McIntyre, FIRST Senior Mentor - Robotics Summer Camps for Fundraising and Promoting FIRST (MS PPT: 25M)
Wendy Wooten, FRC Team 4, FLL Team 3720 - Turning Your Digital Photos Into FIRST-Rate Productions (MS PPT: 4.5M)
Doug Hitchcock, FRC Team 1511
Online Discussion Forum
NEMO has a private online discussion forum hosted on the ChiefDelphi website.
ChiefDelphi is a website comprised of forums on topics of interest to
FIRST teams. All adult NEMs are welcome and encouraged to join
the NEMO discussions. To participate in the NEMO forum, register
to become a member on ChiefDelphi.
Once you are a member of Chief Delphi, go to our Join page
and complete the NEMO registration form including your Chief Delphi screen name. We will then grant access to the private forum.
Workshops and Conference Presentations
NEMO (Non-Engineering Mentor Organization) hosts workshops as we are able at off-season competitions, FIRST team
conferences and other events. Please check our calendar for an
up-to-date listing of events. Because every FIRST team is unique and every team does things a little differently,
we have found that when NEMs get together, a natural exchange of information occurs!
If you are organizing an event and would like to host a NEMO workshop, contact us.
Since we are a "virtual" organization whose membership spans many countries, we rely on NEMs to facilitate workshops. If you are interested in learning how to facilitate a NEMO workshop in your area, please contact us and we will send you a format that has worked well at previous events.
Websites of Interest
- FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science) - official FIRST website
- ChiefDelphi - forum for FIRST participants
- FIRSTwiki - open content encyclopedia about FIRST
- MOEmentum - FRC Team 365's website devoted to assisting rookie teams through their first year
- President's Circle 2007 team resources
- RINOS (Rookies in Need of Support) Team Development Manual for Mentors (PDF: 27pp., 2.02M) produced by FRC Team 25
- RINOS (Rookies in Need of Support) Team Development Manual for Rookies (PDF: 60pp., 1.75M) produced by FRC Team 25
- Team-in-a-Box - FRC Team 341's project to assist rookie teams
A Supporting Organization of FIRST (For
Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology)
? 2004-2007
NEMO