Volunteer
Thank you for your interest in volunteering your time and energy at a FIRST® Tech Challenge event. Without volunteers like you, we would be unable to provide a high quality robotics program to students. This section is designed to help you find FIRST Tech Challenge volunteer opportunities near you. View the tournament day volunteer positions and volunteer for an event today!
For 2017-2018, we will use the FIRST volunteer registration system.
Volunteer Registration (previously VIMS) launched on August 22, 2017. It is now located on the FIRST website Dashboard, found at firstinspires.org. This site is best used with Chrome, Firefox, and Safari, and may also be used on a mobile device. Volunteers must be 13 years or older to create an account and volunteer.
Please take a moment to create a profile there, go to “Volunteer Registration,” and search for the events of your choice (e.g., search Louisiana, FIRST Tech Challenge, and by month or date range to find events.
If you have any questions, please:
- contact us at ftc.volunteers@ftclouisiana.org
- check the Volunteer Registration User Guide (PDF) for step-by-step instructions
- see the FIRST Tech Challenge Volunteer Resources page.
Roles
There’s a job for everyone! Review the roles here and then go to VIMS and volunteer!
DJ
Plays high-energy, age-appropriate music throughout the tournament. Monitors the energy of the crowd, raising crowd enthusiasm with musical selections. Works with the Emcee and Technical Director to coordinate music, score announcements. Brings an appropriate recording of the national anthem for each participating country and plays them during the Opening Ceremony.
Emcee / Game Announcer
This person is the visible, audible host for the event and should be well-spoken and enthusiastic, with knowledge about FIRST Tech Challenge program and the FIRST Tech Challenge yearly game challenge and its rules. Someone with a public speaking, performing, or broadcasting background is ideal. He or she introduces each team during the setup time between rounds, announces the scores, and provides the play-by-play commentary to complement the projected video images.
Field Reset
These volunteers assist with field reset and moving teams and their robots quickly on and off the competition playing fields.
Field Technical Advisor
The Field Technical Advisor should be: Experienced with the TETRIX Robotics Design System; Knowledgeable about the Field Control System that teams use to wirelessly control their Robot during a match; Experienced with computers running the Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 operating systems; Experienced with troubleshooting the WiFi wireless connection between an FTC Robot and a computer running the Field Control System software; Able to use deductive reasoning to solve technical problems; Able to repair damage to the Playing Fields.
Field Technical Advisor Assistant
The Field Technical Advisor Assistant should be: Experienced with computers running the Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7 operating systems; Familiar with setting up WiFi networks; Able to use deductive reasoning to solve technical problems; Able to repair damage to the Playing Fields.
Floater
It is important to have volunteers on hand for use as extra coverage in registration or traffic control areas or as runners for the Judge Advisor, team queuer, and referees. These volunteers can also be reassigned if another volunteer does not show up, or needs to leave due to an emergency or illness.
Hardware Inspector
Responsible for inspecting robots for compliance with robot construction. Robot inspection is conducted during Friday evening and the first two or three hours of the event.
Judge Advisor
The Judge Advisor selects the Judging team. Select this volunteer role if you have been invited to be a Judge or if you would like to be considered for this assignment.
Judges’ Assistant
This volunteer: Assists the Judge Advisor to keep the judges on schedule; Gather necessary information and supplies for the judges; Performs computer data entry; The Judge Advisor selects the Judging Assistants. Select this volunteer role if you have been invited to be a Judge Assistant or if you would like to be considered for this assignment.
Judge
The judging panel should reflect a cross section of the population and be objective with all judging decisions. These men and women serve as role models to the participants through their actions and frequent interactions during the event, most significantly during the team presentations. Judges should be willing to commit to the entire day of the event, judges’ training prior to the event, and associated reading of judging materials. FTC provides a Judges’ Guide each year with the current judging standards and awards listings.
Photographer
This person photographs the tournament for archival and future publicity.
Head Referee / Referee
The referee will: Carefully watch the actions of the robots and teams, and carry out the other referee functions as described in the game challenge; Record scores on Referees’ Scoring Sheets and bring the sheets to the scorekeeper after each match; Be very familiar with the yearly game challenge, rules, Questions and Answers on the web, and all possible scoring scenarios; Participate in the training teleconference provided by FIRST; The Head Referee will confer with other referees in the event of a scoring dispute, and will be responsible for the final decision.
Scorekeeper
This individual enters the score into the computer from the referees’ score sheets after each match, creates and prints the qualification match schedule, and uses the scoring system to display match results and rankings on a projection screen.
Setup
Load-in volunteers setup specific areas Friday afternoon under the direction of that area’s supervisor. Typical area assignments are the robot playing fields, pit area, judges’ room, and volunteer room.
Software Inspector
Responsible for inspecting robots for compliance with software rules. Robot inspection is conducted during Friday evening and the first two or three hours of the event.
Lead Queuer / Queuer
Keeps close track of which teams are on the playing field, guides the teams on deck, and directs them to the appropriate playing field. Maintains a smooth traffic flow between the playing fields and the Pit.
Take down / Cleanup
After the competition, assist in taking down and packing all FTC equipment and loading into event staff vehicles. Pick up tables, chairs, signs, and trash in all event areas, leaving our host’s facility clean.
Technical Help Desk
Responsible for helping teams identify and fix hardware, electrical and software problems with robots. Familiarity with the FTC robotics system and at least one of the programming languages (ROBOTC or LabView) is required.
Video Operator
Operates video switcher, selecting camera and score/computer images for projection.
Volunteer and Team Check-in
Individuals assigned to the check-in table will assist participants with the check-in process, collect consent forms, and distribute information packets. This is a half-day assignment.