On April 20th, at the 2019 FIRST Championship in Houston, FRC Team 1902 4-H Exploding Bacon Robotics won the Championship Chairman's Award, the award given to the team that best embodies the values of FIRST and who serves as a role model for other teams to follow. This made us the latest addition to the FIRST Robotics Competition Hall of Fame. Since the team's founding in 2006, we have been committed to one mission: joining forces with teams, companies, and individuals across the globe to inspire the world. 14 seasons later, and we've been able to have a wide-reaching international impact that we never thought possible. Below is our winning 2019 Chairman's Award essay, with added commentary and information detailing how we got here and where we're going.
The Chairman’s Award is the most prestigious award at FIRST, it honors the team that best represents a model for other teams to emulate and best embodies the mission of FIRST. It was created to keep the central focus of FIRST Robotics Competition on the ultimate goal of transforming the culture in ways that will inspire greater levels of respect and honor for science and technology, as well as encouraging more of today’s youth to become science and technology leaders.
The Chairman’s Award is presented to the team judged to best exemplify the true meaning of FIRST through measurable impact on participants, school, and community at large with emphasis on promoting science and technology through FIRST programs.
The criterion for the Chairman’s Award has special emphasis on recent accomplishments within the last five years. The judges focus on teams’ activities over a sustained period, as distinguished from just the robot design and build period.
The FIRST Robotics Competition is not about machines; it is about the experience of people working together toward a shared goal. Documenting and preserving your team’s FIRST experience becomes an important component of the over-all FIRST experience.
4-H Exploding Bacon (EB) Team 1902 was created in 2006 to provide an opportunity for any student without access to a robotics team. Our mission has always been about building robots & helping people. We start each year with a goal to design & build a season-ready robot, but it transforms into so much more as we guide our students to be the next generation of STEM leaders, build an inclusive family, forge valuable relationships with our local & global communities & create a platform for FIRST sustainability. By staying true to the values of FIRST , we work towards our One Mission of magnifying the impact of FIRST teams into one powerful force for global change.
In 2014 we were working out of a mentor's house, overwhelmed by an increasing demand for outreach. Our original aim to be strong advocates for FIRST in our community led to our determination to have a deliberate & sustainable approach to changing the culture. Realizing that our resources were limited, we focused on finding ways to multiply the impact each team member could have by initiating strategic planning. This annual meeting serves as a launchpad for our endeavors, enabling us to set & accomplish goals such as funding a practice robot or revitalizing our team leadership. With our organizational partner 4-H, local & corporate sponsors, active college mentors & strong family atmosphere, we've overcome our struggles of acquiring a build space & instilling a sense of community despite our vast differences & distances.
Whether it's through writing grants, representing our sponsors at demos, or organizing a thank-you brunch, our students fiercely advocate for increased FIRST support through sponsorships. We started the team with one student in mind, but now we span an area of 1,275 sq miles serving 39 homeschool & traditional students across 4 Central FL counties, providing opportunities for many without direct access to a team.
It all started with a few science experiments, a robot & some kids with orange sleeves partnering with a local restaurant & elementary school. Over time our students have laid a foundation for our reputation & spread our passion for STEM & FIRST. Demonstrated by the 6000+ student volunteer hours garnered since 2014, EB students sustain our outreach legacy with a strong community presence geared towards anyone & everyone whether it's a farmer at the 4-H FL Fair or a 4 yr-old at the Orlando Science Center. Since then, we've forged connections with those who could help amplify our impact such as local tech groups, NBCUniversal Media-Tech's Hackathon & AT Makers' Adaptathon. Beyond our work with the Boys & Girls Club, NASA's Dreamflight & Maker Faire, we've initiated new govt outreach by collaborating with our State Senator & Representative to continue their support for a FL Bill that funds FRC registrations.
After an amazing experience presenting with Don Bossi at the 2017 CXO Summit & Dean Kamen at the 2017 Defense Manufacturing Conference, FIRST leveraged our experience & invited us again to present with Mr. Bossi to Fortune 500 CEOs at the Material Handling Institute Global Conference. With students dedicated to engaging others in STEM & a desire to make a sustained impact, EB has built a tangible enthusiasm for FIRST in our community. After moving through 10 build spaces, we're back at our roots: down the street from the same restaurant & Cheney Elementary.
Establishing a memorable presence in a city like Orlando was challenging but necessary to improve recruitment & retention of students, sponsors & mentors. From the moment our iconic pig on a rocket was drawn on a napkin & the infectious Oink Oink Boom was FIRST cheered, we learned what an approachable image is capable of communicating. We're honored to see our passion recognized through Regional & World Champs Imagery Awards, leading us to do what we do best: help others. With our Big Bacon Theory of Image & Marketing (BBTIM) workshop, we've created resources for teams to further promote the values of FIRST & multiply their impact. We started by helping rookie teams define their unique image & now after presenting 26 times (8 at Worlds), BBTIM has evolved for all levels of FIRST to promote sustainability & increase support for FIRST everywhere.
After starting our annual NXT Summer Camps in 2012 & distributing hundreds of Exploding Science Resource Books at World Champs, we discovered a limitation: we could only travel so far. Our aspiration to do more transformed into 133 Spark kits impacting countless kids in 43 countries. The shoebox-sized science kits maximize simple reusable resources to teach the principles of STEM with hands-on activities, an extension & culmination of our local outreach work. Whether it was through a pilot program with Tulane University that led to our first major U.S. school integration, a partnership with FIRST Global Competition teams resulting in a 150% growth in countries, or a student-led service trip to India giving EB a deeper understanding of the direct impact on each child, we've always worked to make sure Spark was fulfilling its initial mission & intended impact: providing opportunity.
Spark isn't just an opportunity for children worldwide to learn problem-solving skills; it's transformed FIRST communities by providing a sustainable & replicable program where teams can jumpstart their own outreach. In addition to taking kits back home, several FIRST teams have translated the instruction manuals into 5 languages. We are assisting teams from 4 countries with mass offsite Spark creation projects. Countless letters, pictures & videos from the kids & educators impacted by Spark motivate our students to continue fundraising & building kits to inspire the next STEM leaders.
In 2016, we created the #FIRSTLikeAGirl movement to improve STEM culture by sharing the stories of relatable role models in FIRST. We started with our local community, targeting FLL events to combat the significant drop in female STEM participation during middle school. It started as a simple picture with a hashtag, but now it's 1M+ impressions on thousands of photos with girls & their inspiring mentors. It began as 1 team trying to disrupt the culture, but now it's 1,092 teams of all levels from 57 countries making it loud. It was 1 button on a backpack, but now it's 20,000+ buttons, tattoos & signs distributed everywhere from Texas to Japan. It was just a Youtube video explaining one Bacon girl's journey through robotics, but now it's 70+ videos & a recognized project of the broader FIRST community. The long nights of pressing pins & designing graphics have translated into support from Fortune 500 CEOs & #FIRSTLikeAGirl Workshops. Through our World Champs #FIRSTLikeAGirl Panels led by FIRST Diversity & Inclusion, new blog interviews & collaborative impact research, the humbling feedback we've received has revealed the power of the girls who identify with & embrace our community overcoming social stigmas. Beyond an article for Amy Poehler's SMART Girls & support from FIRST itself, the formidable, heartwarming comments from girls around the world have broadened our idea about the true definition of an inclusive community & what it takes to make it better.
To grow our programs, we collaborated with other teams & through our conversations, we realized the need for more direct recognition of FIRST team-created programs. This dialogue inspired EB to create FIRSTAlliances, a platform for all levels of FIRST regardless of age, skill level, or location, fostering connections by highlighting their strengths, promoting their initiatives & creating a hub for collaboration. The site benefits FLL as it provides the only web presence for 41% of the teams registered & supports FIRST as a whole by unifying our global impact. With 162 teams from 13 countries listing 53 programs, FIRSTAlliances has challenged our students to improve real-world skills through its strategic planning, Python coding & social media management developing today's STEM innovators.
EB was born from the collaboration of FL FIRST alumni. Since then, it has been our mission to support the same FIRST community that gave so much to us. Beyond sharing a wide variety of resources, hosting Official FRC Kickoffs with wksps & hosting FLL/FLL Jr. events, EB co-created & launched our inaugural offseason 2018 Pre-Season Expo. Working together towards a stronger, more unified FIRST in FL, teams presented wksps & promoted the progression of programs to elevate the sustainability & impact of local teams.
We realized that the strength of the FIRST community translates beyond barriers & borders. When our Dutch friends travel to Orlando, we share our homes & build space, help fabricate parts & have dinner together. Whether it's scheduling rookie help time at events, bringing batteries for our Israeli friends, or even having an EB student translate for Chinese teams & judges, teams across the globe know us as a supportive member of the FIRST network. To strengthen our inclusive programs like #FIRSTLikeAGirl, Spark & FIRSTAlliances, we rely on the collaborative network of FIRST teams & strongly advocate for the direct progression of FIRST programs to build a stronger FIRST destined to fulfill our One Mission.
The ultimate resources in FIRST are the participants who inspire everyday. Our Mission to combine these efforts allows us to magnify our impact into a powerful force for cultural change. Spark provides opportunities for hands-on exploration, #FIRSTLikeAGirl enables us to empower females & FIRSTAlliances unifies efforts of teams around the world. Exploding Bacon works tirelessly to make a direct impact that is amplified through our programs, rippling out to leave a legacy of global collaboration, opportunity & inspiration. Alone we aspire, but alongside FIRSTers everywhere #TogetherWeInspire.
Thank you to everyone who went on this journey with us.
Thank you to every sponsor, friend and family member who graciously assisted the team.
Thank you to every single past or present Bacon student, parent and mentor.
Thank you to Lockheed Martin and 4-H for being with us since the beginning.
Thank you to Wendy, Kelly and James Austin for being the start of it all.
Exploding Bacon has been lucky enough to work alongside Don Bossi, the president of FIRST, at multiple demos and outreach events. After winning the Championship Chairman's Award, Don shared the following with the team:
"From joining me in representing FIRST in front of corporate sponsors to sharing the experiences of successful women and girls in FIRST through the #firstlikeagirl campaign, their work is helping to advance the FIRST mission of improving our culture and inspiring broader participation in STEM. Congratulations to everyone involved in ‘Exploding Bacon’ on their well-deserved Chairman’s Award at the 2019 FIRST Championship in Houston – the highest honor our community bestows on a team."
We were extremely surprised during build season 2019 to learn that our hashtag was amassing over 1 million impressions per month on Twitter alone. While we tracked likes, shares, and posts by other teams using #FIRSTLikeAGirl, it wasn't until we signed up for the free plan of a commercial social media analytics tool that we saw how many people were coming into contact with #FIRSTLikeAGirl on a daily basis. We even double checked the number on a different platform because we just couldn't believe it!