FTC Oregon Update: September 20, 2019

FIRST Tech Challenge Oregon Community:

Before I communicate business items, the Staff and Board of Directors of ORTOP are saddened and stunned by the tragic loss of Charlotte Van Valkenburg, a champion of the Oregon FIRST community. Charlotte embodied Gracious Professionalism in her multiple roles, as Coach of FIRST Robotics Competition Team #5468, Chaos Theory, Mentor and League Manager for FIRST Tech Challenge Central Oregon League, and volunteer coordinator for Bend area Intel Oregon FIRST LEGO League Qualifying Tournaments. Her contributions were recognized earlier this year at the Pacific Northwest District Championships, where she received the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award. We grieve alongside Charlotte's family, friends and students impacted by this loss, but heartened by wonderful memories of Charlotte and committed to carrying on her incredible legacy.
A memorial service will be held for Charlotte at the Westside Church in Bend, Oregon on Wednesday, September 25th at 1:00 PM.
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A few items of business for you:

• October 5th Workshop at Portland State University - SIGN UP 
• Using TensorFlow in JAVA to Locate Scoring Objects on the FTC Field - Applying Deep Learning
• The focus in this hands-on workshop is writing code that recognizes and locates game pieces. It is a hands-on experience with TensorFlow. Students will modify code to make a robot more capable.  Along the way students will be introduced to Convolutional Neural Networks to help them understand how Deep Learning works.  
• Presented by Dr. Edward Epp, Oregon IEEE Robotics and Automation Chair 
• FTC Oregon is accepting applications for this workshop. Slots are limited to 12 per session. 
• Applications are submitted by the Team Mentor.  The Mentor can recommend a student or an adult mentor attend the workshop. 
• Our goal is to provide this opportunity to teams who have some autonomous Java programming skills but have not attempted using Tensor Flow or have not been successful.  
• CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE SIGN UP.  Open until NOON on Tuesday, September 24. 
• Please note: A lecture style presentation on Tensor Flow will be offered at FIRST Fair on October 19th at Gladstone HS. Because it will not be hands-on there are no restrictions on the number of attendees. 
• 2019-2020 FTC Oregon League, Tournament Schedule 
• We don't have all of the pieces to the puzzle in place but enough to release this to you. 
• CLICK HERE to see the current view of the League and Tournament Schedule 
• FIRST Fair - October 5th at Gladstone High School 
• WOW! There are LOTs of workshop offerings. And we are SO close to sharing them with you. The Class Descriptions, Schedule, Sign-ups. Only the FTC Programming workshops have Sign-ups, all other FTC sessions are open for who ever shows up.
   I expect everything  to be posted on THIS PAGE by Saturday morning, Sept 21.
• Skystone Mentor Letter 2019 - snail mailed. Today I mailed letters with stamps on them to all 2018 Lead Mentors and 2019/20 New Mentors for whom I could find a snail mail address.  Please take time to read it, especially if you are not getting the emails. :-)  If you are getting my emails you can click the link and read it.  It's a Catch-22. LOL!
• FTC EQUIPMENT FOR SALE: And Total Chaos will not be participating this season. Their coach is hoping to sell their equipment to teams that need it. Contact him at: Varad Josh - Varad.joshi (at)yahoo(dot)com Phone: 503-621-8420

We kicked off Skystone! Now what?

FTC Oregon Community: 

Three cheers for all of our Skystone  Kickoff Sites!
Hood River Valley HS, Beaverton School of Science and Technology, Canby High School, Hamlin MS, Springfield, St. Mary's School, Medford, OSU Cascades, Bend, and Tillamook HS!!!  Hope you all enjoyed it.

Now what???? 
If you didn't attend a kickoff -  CLICK HERE to view the folder with all of the videos shown at the Kickoff Sites 

Next up  - 
All the things you need to do to participate in FIRST Tech Challenge 2019-2020. 

Here is a brief checklist: 

• Nationally register and pay the registration fee
• Get both Lead Mentors through background screening 
• Get parents and team members signed up on the FTC Oregon email list 
• Recruit team members and organize them, secure space for meetings. 
• Order needed kits/parts/field elements. 
• Pick a path: Join a FTC Oregon League and compete starting in the fall  or go Non-League and wait until January to compete 
• Get ready to sign up for FTC Oregon events starting on Oct 1 
• For the answers to the above click the link and bookmark it. 
• >>>>FTC Oregon Team Resources https://ortop.org/ftc/ftc-team-resources/ 

A Change in Communication 
Instead of writing long-winded emails/blog posts..... GOING FORWARD... I'll be using the email/blog post to direct you to LINKS on the ORTOP webpage or the national FTC webpage  for key information. 

If you delete an email or can't find something, bookmark ftcoregon.blogspot.com  and go there.

Or go to FTC Oregon Team Resources https://ortop.org/ftc/ftc-team-resources/  and look at HOT TOPICS. 

FINALLY - if you have question, registration issues, want to chat..... email me or call.     My time is dedicated to helping all of you "Get In The Skystone Game" !

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cathy Swider, Program Manager

FIRST Tech Challenge

Oregon Robotics Tournament & Outreach Program (ORTOP)

Office Phone: 503.486.7622 x 103

Cathy-Swider@ortop.org  | www.ortop.org Pronouns: she/her/hers

4800 SW Griffith Dr., Suite 215  | Beaverton, OR 97005

See what’s happening with FTC:  

          

Opening doors to the worlds of science, technology,

engineering and mathematics for Oregon’s youth.                                                                                                                             

    

Fall is almost here - Welcome back - It's KICKOFF TIME

FIRST TECH CHALLENGE SEASON KICKOFF
SEPTEMBER 7, 20199:00 AM PDT - Game ReVEAL
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Everyone is invited to our live
FIRST Tech Challenge Oregon Kickoff Events!

The events are open to current teams and interested adults and kids who want to learn more about the FIRST Tech Challenge program, how to start a team or get involved as volunteers.  We are looking forward to seeing new people and returning league and non-league teams and volunteers.Invite someone new to come to the event!
Connecting with a SKYSTONE KICKOFF 

• Attend a live in-person event! There are 7 FTC Oregon Kickoffs scheduled in  
• Beaverton, Bend, Canby, Hood River, Medford, Springfield and Tillamook  - 
• CLICK HERE for event details 
• Hold your own Kickoff party for your own team or invite a few teams and watch the Kickoff on TWITCH-TV from California -  scroll to bottom of screen for links 
• Catch it later by watching the game animation video on the Game/Season page

      What you will have access to on Saturday, September 7th

• Game Animation Video 
• Game Manual 2 with all of the Skystone Rules
• Vision Targets 
• One-page overview of the Skystone game 
•  GLOBAL KICKOFF PAGE – FIRST Tech Challenge  – SKYSTONE 

What will be updated on  Monday, September 9th 

• Revised Game Manual 1 - including Judging/Awards and updated rules
• Most, if not all, the resource materials here  

When will the FIRST Tech Challenge Forum be open for Game related questions?

Monday, September 16th

OTHER SEASON INFORMATION 

How to order your very own Skystone Kit!! 

• Go to AndyMark! and place your order for a full or half Skystone Kit   
• Field Wall/Tiles - complete kit with carry bags 
• Just Tiles 

REGISTER YOUR TEAM FOR THE FTC 2019-2020 SEASON! 

ORTOP Team Support Award (financial assistance) Information Page 
Round #2 applications are due by August 30th  ....but I'll leave the link open through Labor Day :-)

OUTREACH OPPORTUNITY - We are looking for one FTC Team to volunteer for the ORTOP booth at Portland mini-Maker Faire on Saturday Afternoon on September 7th. 
Click Here to Sign Up 

VISTA Opportunity - ORTOP is approved for two  FIRST VISTA positions (Volunteer in Service to America). This is a full-time position and requires someone to serve in the ORTOP office in Beaverton. Should be a FIRST alum or FIRST Volunteer, cannot be attending school or hold another job.  Contact Cathy Swider for more information. 

FIRST FAIR AND WORKSHOPS

FIRST Tech Challenge Oregon will be offering workshops for rookie and veteran teams this fall.   We have a new location and format for our workshops. This season FTC Oregon will be at FIRST Fair, a collaborative workshop experience with FIRST Robotics Competition teams and volunteers. Some tracks will be FTC only, some both programs, and some for volunteers, team parents and community supporters. 

• FIRST Fair - Saturday, October 19th at Gladstone High School 
•  Registration will be per class /per person via Sign-up Genius and will be available shortly after FTC Kickoff 
• Full schedule of workshops will be released after Kickoff
• Tensor Flow Workshop in JAVA instructed by Dr. Edward Epp, IEEE, Robotics and Automation Chair  and co-founder of FTC Oregon 
• at Portland State University 
• October 5th - Morning Session  (12 team members)
• October 5th - Afternoon Session (12 team members) 
• limited to 12 team members per workshop 
• If your team is well versed in Tensor Flow using Java, please allow others to have the slots. This is an introductory class. 
• We are limiting the opportunity to: 
• veteran team members only
• one team member per team 
• pre-requisite: Attendees must have the skill to create a Java program that drives their robot forward until a light sensor detects a line.  (note: create = write, not copy/paste) 
• Registration will be per class/per person via Sign-up Genius and will be available shortly after FTC Kickoff 
• What about a Tensor Flow using BLOCKS workshop? Stay tuned for more details. 

Pre-Season FTC Update!

FIRST Tech Challenge OREGON Community!

Update on Cathy's schedule:   As some of you may have heard Cathy Swider (me, who writes this blog and is the FTC Oregon Affiliate Partner)  has been out of the office on medical leave since mid-July due to a car accident (and vacation prior to that).  I have just returned to the office today (Aug 12). I'm not quite back to full time yet but I'm working on the most important items to keep things moving for this season. I am behind on some critical tasks.  Your support and help to make sure we kickoff this season successfully is greatly appreciated. I'm thanking you in advance for your help.  Thank you all for being so patient waiting for me to return emails/phone calls.  If I haven't returned one, please send it again.


FIRST Tech Challenge Oregon KICKOFF EVENTS for SKYSTONE!


GLOBAL FTC KICK OFF Saturday, September 7th! 

• Doors open by 8:45 am. GAME REVEAL at 9:00 AM PST 
• We have seven OREGON sites for SKYSTONE kickoff events this year.
• Bend, Hood River, Springfield, Beaverton, Medford, Canby, Tillamook!  
• Check out the sites and schedule!  
• Watch for event information to be updated with additional site activities. 

 NATIONAL REGISTRATION FOR FIRST Tech Challenge 
As of today (Aug 12) we have 32 FTC Teams registered for Oregon.  That's about 176 teams short of what I expect to register for this season.
Time to kick it in gear and get ready for a great SKYSTONE season powered by Star Wars: Force for Change. It starts with getting your national registration started. You can start to update your information for this season prior to paying. It allows me to see that you are in process for this season.
LINK TO COST AND NATIONAL REGISTRATION page .

FIRST Tech Challenge GAME MANUAL ONE 

• It was published in July 2019. There ARE CHANGES you need to know about. 
• This is the page with ALL current updates for SKYSTONE .
• NOTE: There is nothing in Game Manual One about Judging or Awards. It will be updated on September 7th. 

Here is a table of contents for Game Manual One.
SKYSTONE Game Manual Part 1 - updated 7/10/19

• ​Section 1 & 2 - Intro and Gracious Professionalism
• Section 3 - Tournament Definitions
• Section 4 - Tournament Day Outline
• Section 5 - Tournament Types
• Section 6 - Eligibility and Advancement
• Section 7 - The Robot
• Section 8 - Robot Inspection
• Section 9 - Award Criteria
• Section 10 - Dean's List Award

You might want to find the answers to these questions.

• Will red/blue alliance flags be provided to teams this season or will teams need to make their own to spec? 
• Has the scoring system changed that changes how teams are ranked?  
• Have some behaviors been specifically called out as egregious acts subject to red cards and DQ? 
• Will a careful read of the Robot Inspection Section of Game Manual One lead to game clues? 

ORTOP Team Support Awards Application

ORTOP is accepting ROUND TWO applications for ORTOP Team Support Awards. Please read the ORTOP Team Support Information page for details, application worksheets and the online application link. Round Two apps will be accepted until August 30th. 
 
Round One Applications are now in the review process. 
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NEXT BLOG in about one week: Information about Leagues, League Meet Dates and Tournament Schedule. 

SuperQuest slots available for Newport, Beaverton / Judge Feedback

Wishing everyone a Happy Fourth of July!  Let us know if your team is in a parade!

On the email list/ Off the email list for 2019-2020?????  - click here All changes submitted on/by June 30 have been processed. 

SuperQuest Sessions Many slots open for NEWPORT - July 9 - 11 - REGISTRATION LINK 
Some slots remain for Beaverton July 21 - Aug 2  - REGISTRATION LINK

****YIKES!!! We have not yet met the minimum number of participants for the July 9 - 11 SuperQuest session in Newport. If this is the best session for you to attend please sign up immediately.  Open to teachers and non-teachers. *****

Please let others know about this opportunity. $50 refundable deposit. Show up and get refunded.
Terry Alexander ( Hillsboro HS Technology Teacher) is the instructor.

Outline of the three day session:
DAY 1 
Morning – Introductions and hands-on training bots, Basic navigation using onBot Java and Blocks
Afternoon - FTC Overview, starting a program, or advancing a program, more hands-on with robots, beyond Tetrix - custom parts, sources, COTS.
DAY 2 
Morning – Drive systems, Communication between robot controller and robot, troubleshooting, obstacle course
Afternoon – Robot manipulators, Judging and Engineering notebook, obstacle course, CAD and 3D Printing
DAY 3 
Morning – FTC in classroom settings, clubs, outreach, under-represented students, team visit and demonstration
Afternoon – Time reserved for topics identified by the group, advanced programming topics - Vuforia

ORTOP Team Financial Support Awards
Sine Die! With the final bang of the Oregon State Legislature gavel in Salem, we are confident that ORTOP will be receiving the Oregon Department of Education: FIRST Robotics grant funding. This means to receive funds from ODE for FIRST Tech Challenge, you need to apply THROUGH ORTOP, not ODE.  ORTOP Team Support Award funding also includes funds from corporate sponsors and foundations.  Read all about it here. 

Judge Feedback at tournaments 
If you've been around awhile, you remember receiving written feedback from the Judges at tournaments. That practice was halted about 5 years ago by FIRST. ORTOP continued to fight for the right to give our teams feedback.  Happy News!  It's coming back.... we hope. FIRST has issued Request for Proposals. ORTOP plans to submit one written by our Judge Advisors and Cathy Swider, Affiliate Partner.  We are welcoming your input to our ORTOP proposal. If you have something to say about what would be constructive feedback for your team to receive, please email Cathy Swider. 

Here is the post national FIRST Tech Challenge issued today.  

FTC Mentor Workshops for Mentors

• SuperQuest: FTC MENTOR WORKSHOP ARE HAPPENING!!! 
• Thank you all for your response to our interest survey about FTC Mentor Workshops.  We are happy to announce SuperQuest: FTC Mentor Workshops for Summer 2019. SuperQuest is a program of the Oregon Computer Science Teachers Association.  
• FTC Mentor WORKSHOP AGENDA: Informed by last year's workshop topic survey, the FTC Mentor Workshops will focus on Hardware and design concepts, Programming - Blocks and Java and Electronics- wiring and debugging the phones. For rookies - an overview of basic FTC program elements will be provided. 
• The 3-day workshops provide instruction and in SQ tradition, strive to "meet each participant where they are and provide what they need to go further".  Lots of hands-on time.  Both Veteran and Rookie Mentors encouraged to sign-up. 
• Terry Alexander, HIllsboro HS Technology Teacher/FTC Mentor veteran will instruct the FTC Mentor Workshops. 
• Other 
• WHO CAN ATTEND: SuperQuest: FTC Mentor Workshop is open to adults; teachers and non-teachers, who are or will be mentoring FIRST Tech Challenge teams in the classroom or in an after-school setting in Fall 2019. 
• Three days  --  9:00 am to 4:00 pm.  Continental breakfast and a delicious lunch included!
• You’ll earn 21 hours of Professional Development credit (for teachers), and some classes will also offer graduate credit.
• And it’s all free (except for a fully refundable $50 deposit)! Show up and you get your $50 back. 
• Clackamas Community College - Wilsonville Campus - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
• NEXT WEEK!!! June 25 - 27 (Tuesday - Thursday) 
• Newport Middle School - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER 
• July 9 - 11 (Tuesday - Thursday) 
• SQ:Pop-up Beaverton @ ORTOP office - Registration link to be posted  
•  July 31 - Aug 2  (Wednesday - Friday) 

Workshops, Activities and Camps! 
We've been adding LOTS of activities to our Summer Activities page. Check it out .

Special Request for FTC Team Member Volunteers 

• Cathy Swider at ORTOP office in Beaverton is looking for a two FTC team member volunteers to help me at the ORTOP office to  prepare for an AAUW STEM Girls Camp in Bend. Needed June 24 or 25. 
• And I am looking for Central Oregon FTC Team members with driver skills to assist at the Camp at OSU Cascades Campus on Friday, June 28th afternoon noon - 4 pm.  
• Email cathy-swider(at)ortop(dot)org 

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• Opting IN or Opting OUT of the FTC Oregon e-mailing list for 2019-2020... moving toward GDPR compliant.   If you haven't already.....
• Click here and enter your email address to let us know your status - opt in or opt out for e-mail lists for the 2019-2020 season. 
• As a side note: Lead Mentors of nationally registered/paid teams will be added to the opt in list automatically per FIRST communication policy as registered mentors.

It's Almost SUMMER!

It's Almost Summertime! 
Before we turn off our attention to fun in the sun, there are a few items requiring your attention. 

• Opting IN or Opting OUT of the FTC Oregon e-mailing list for 2019-2020... moving toward GDPR compliant.   If you haven't already.....
• Click here and enter your email address to let us know your status - opt in or opt out for e-mail lists for the 2019-2020 season. 
• As a side note: Lead Mentors of nationally registered/paid teams will be added to the opt in list automatically per FIRST communication policy as registered mentors.

• FIRST Tech Challenge Mentor training Workshops  - We are in the process of arranging to hold FIRST Tech Challenge summer workshops for mentors in association with SuperQuest (SQ), a program of the Oregon Computer Science Teachers Association. 
• The workshop would cover Java/Blocks programming, a Hardware and Electronics overviews, parts fabrication, the program elements of FIRST Tech Challenge. 
• We need to demonstrate that there is sufficient participation interest before we can be assigned a SQ slot. 
• To help us gauge an interest level in the sessions, if you think you would be interested in attending a FIRST Tech Challenge SuperQuest session, please click here.  

• Summer Camps and Activities - Check them out, and if you know about more, submit and we'll add it to the page.   
• *****FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL--Recently added is the GirlUp Camp in Bend. This week-long  STEM camp for "rising 6th, 7th and 8th graders who identify as female" is a program of the United Nations and sponsored by Intel.  Transportation to Bend, Lodging, Meals and Camp activities are covered by Intel.   Click the link for more information.  Only 25 more slots remained as of yesterday.
• A few links I'm sure will be helpful. 
• Take time to read the ORTOP Team Support Award application information
• National FIRST Tech Challenge Registration is now open!  We have 12 teams!
  
• SITE/VENUE changes are happening! Help needed! 
• Due to school construction, we will not be able to use Madison HS in NE Portland and Tigard HS in Tigard for league meets and tournaments.  ORTOP is actively seeking replacement venues for the Rose City League and the Tualatin Valley League. If your team(s) would like to host, please contact Cathy Swider as soon as possible. 

• JUNE Happenings!
  
  Happy Pride Month! Learn more about LBGTQ+ of FIRST

CONGRATULATIONS SENIORS !!! You are now FIRST ALUMNI!   Social media is spreading the good news that our FIRST Tech Challenge Seniors are graduating and moving on.  I've heard that our seniors will be attending Oregon State, University of Oregon, Portland State, numerous Community Colleges across Oregon, Carnegie Mellon, UPenn, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Harvey Mudd, Purdue and MIT and many more! Good luck in your future pursuits. Be sure to come back and visit us on breaks!