Chairman's Award

The Chairman's Award is the most prestigious award that a FIRST team can be awarded. The team that wins is a model for all other FRC teams to emulate, and best embodies the goals of and ideals of FIRST

As of December 8th, 2016 (Page taken from )

## Dates

* Submission Opens: Thursday, November 10, 2016
* Submission Closes: Thursday, February 09, 2017, 3PM Eastern Time

## Events Where It's Awarded

* District Events
* Regional Competitions
* District Championship Events
* *FIRST* Championship

## Overview

The concept of the Chairman’s Award includes Regional and District Championship Chairman’s Awards, which enable *FIRST*to recognize more teams for their exemplary efforts in spreading the *FIRST*message, as well as their talents in organizing materials for their presentations.

Because the Chairman’s Award recognizes sustained excellence and impact, not just a one (1) year team effort, it is not possible for a *FIRST*year (rookie) team to receive the Chairman’s Award, Rookie Teams will NOT be considered for the award, are NOT required to provide a Chairman’s Award video, and will not be interviewed, as Chairman’s Award judging resources are limited.

The teams who have earned the Regional and District Championship Chairman’s Award can travel to the *FIRST*Championship to be considered for the Chairman’s Award.

## NASA Grant Teams

All teams that received a NASA Grant, including rookie recipients, must prepare a Chairman’s Award submission on line through the Youth Team Member Registration System as part of the grant requirement.

All teams are encouraged to print a copy of their final submission for their records and to confirm for themselves that the submission was accepted.

## Submission and Eligibility Information

The criterion for the Chairman’s Award has special emphasis on recent accomplishments in both the current season, and the preceding two to five years. The judges focus on teams’ activities over a sustained period, as distinguished from just the robot design and build period.

Teams\* are eligible for the Chairman’s Award at each Regional or District event. Teams will be restricted to earning this award once at each level of competition.  In other words, once a team has earned Chairman’s Award at a Regional or District event, they may not earn it again that season at a later Regional or District Event.  At District Championship, only District teams that have won Chairman’s Award at a District event during the current season are eligible.

\*District Teams who participate at Regionals or inter-district events are not eligible for the Chairman’s Award at those events.

*FIRST*will present a Chairman’s Award at each Regional and District event. Chairman’s Award recipients from District events will go forward to be considered at the District Championship.

The recipients from the Regional events and the District Championships will be eligible for the Chairman’s Award presented at the *FIRST*Championship.

## Hall of Fame

Hall of Fame members; i.e., teams that have already earned the Championship Chairman’s Award, are ineligible to resubmit for consideration for five (5) years. Members of the Hall of Fame are here.

## Submission Content

The Chairman’s Award is presented to the team judged to have created the best partnership effort among team participants and which best exemplified the true meaning of *FIRST*through measurable impact on participants, school, and community at large.

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.

## Submission Format

The Essay, excluding the Executive Summary, will be limited to 10,000 characters, including spaces and punctuation.

## Submission Process

Students must submit their team’s Chairman’s Award submission, in English, through the *FIRST*Youth Team Member Registration System. Follow the directions shown on the site to submit your team’s entry.

Submitters must enter information, save it, and return to the site to edit the Chairman’s Award submission until they are ready to finalize it for final judging. All entries must be finalized by the deadline. No entries will be accepted or altered after this deadline.

Chairman’s Award submitters will go into Youth Team Member Registration System and enter the following required information:

* Team Number
* Team Name/Nickname
* Briefly describe the impact of the *FIRST*program on team participants with special emphasis on the current season and the preceding two to five years
* Describe the impact of the *FIRST*program on your community with special emphasis on the current season and the preceding two to five years
* Describe the team’s innovative or creative method to spread the *FIRST*message
* Describe examples of how your team members act as role models and inspire other *FIRST*team members to emulate
* Team’s initiatives to help start or form other *FIRST*Robotics Competition teams
* Describe the team’s initiatives to help start or form other *FIRST*teams (including *FIRST*LEGO League Jr., *FIRST*LEGO League, & *FIRST*Tech Challenge)
* Describe the team’s initiatives on assisting other *FIRST*teams (including *FIRST*LEGO League Jr., *FIRST*LEGO League, & *FIRST*Tech Challenge) with progressing through the *FIRST*program
* Describe how your team works with other *FIRST*teams to serve as mentors to younger or less experienced *FIRST*teams (including *FIRST*LEGO League Jr., *FIRST*LEGO League, & *FIRST*Tech Challenge)
* Describe your Corporate/University Sponsors
* Describe the strength of your partnership with your sponsors with special emphasis on the current season and the preceding two to five years
* For *FIRST*Robotics Competition teams older than 5 years, briefly describe your team’s broader impact from its inception
* Describe how your team would explain what *FIRST*is to someone who has never heard of it
* Briefly describe other matters of interest to the *FIRST*Judges, if any
* Essay (10,000 characters allowed, including spaces and punctuation, or approximately 1500 words): Judges encourage creativity of expression but the essay must clearly deliver information and facts describing what the team is all about. The essay should draw attention to the strengths of the team. This essay, along with the other information, will serve as the basis for the judges to make the decision on which team earns the Chairman’s Award.

Chairman’s Award submissions are posted on a private, password-protected site where only the judges and authorized *FIRST*staff can read the entries.

*Please note: By making a submission the Submitter irrevocably grants to FIRST and FIRST designees the right to use any or all of the submission in any and all media for the purpose of describing the submission, describing the Award, and/or otherwise promoting FIRST and FIRST programs.*

Judges at each regional and district event will be interviewing the candidates who successfully completed the submission process. Teams should always print and bring a hard copy of their submission to the event.

In preparing this document, bear in mind that students, engineers, teachers, community, school, sponsors, families, and other supporters are all integral parts of your team experience. Your submission needs to clearly convey the factors outlined above.

*Important* *Note: Chairman’s Award Judges also review the information entered in the Team Spotlight section as part of the Chairman’s Award submission. This information is entered as part of the*Team Registration System*.*

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## Interview Process and Video Requirement

Eligible teams that submitted f,or the Chairman’s Award will need to sign up at pit admin and provide a Chairman’s Award Video Consent Form in order to be interviewed by the Judges at the event. If a team does not sign up for an interview slot, they will be considered ineligible to earn the Chairman’s Award at that event. Chairman’s Award interviews are limited to twelve (12) minutes total; up to seven (7) minutes for a presentation by the team (which includes set-up) and up to five (5) minutes of question and answer led by the Judges. Not more than three (3) student team members, plus one (1) adult mentor, are allowed to attend the interview. Only student (non-mentor) team members are allowed to present information and answer questions from the Judges. The one (1) adult mentor from the team who may attend may observe and later provide feedback to the team, but the mentor is not allowed to provide any assistance during the interview itself. If the mentor provides any assistance during the interview, the team will be downgraded. Exception: If necessary, the adult mentor may provide translation services for students needing foreign language or sign language translation so the students and Judges may communicate. This adult mentor may provide no assistance to the team other than translation service.

Teams are strongly encouraged to take advantage of the option to have one (1) adult mentor present during the interview to observe and later provide feedback. This feedback can be very valuable in helping teams hone their skills. Teams will not be downgraded by the judges for having a mentor present in this capacity. This is a specific part of judge training.

Teams desiring written feedback from Judges will be able to receive it upon request. To receive feedback, teams submitting for Chairman’s Award must fill out their Team Number and Team Name on the Chairman’s Award feedback form and provide it to the Judges at the beginning of their Chairman’s Award interview. Completed forms will be available at the end of the event. We are requiring teams to request feedback before they interview to help ensure Judging resources are not invested in teams not interested in receiving feedback.

Teams submitting for the Chairman’s Award must provide a Video to the judges at the start of their Chairman’s Award interview. The content of the video should explain what the team has done to earn the Chairman’s Award. The video content may be in the team’s native language, but if that language is not English, the team must add English subtitles to be eligible for the Chairman’s Award at any event in the US or Canada, or at any non-US or Canadian event at which their native language is not generally spoken. The video may be shown to the judges during the team’s seven (7) minute presentation time or the team can choose to not show the video during the presentation time. Even if the video is NOT shown during the interview, a Video and Chairman’s Award Video Consent Form must still be provided to the Judges in order for the team to be considered for the Chairman’s Award. In addition, the team must provide the equipment for viewing (i.e. laptop/speakers etc.) the video if they intend to show it during their interview. Teams who do not submit a Video to the judges will not be considered eligible for the Chairman’s Award and will not be interviewed by the judges. This is applicable at all events including the *FIRST*Championship.

#### The Video format should be as follows:

* A 16:9 (“widescreen aspect ratio”)
* Not more than 3 minutes long, no shorter than 1 minute long.
* Include a clean audio track
* Free of copyright restrictions, including music.
* May be presented to Judges as a DVD or on a USB Flash Drive

#### Video may consist of:

* Video footage
* Voice over/music over still photographs
* Animated presentation
* PowerPoint converted to VIDEO format

#### Copyright:

* If using copyrighted music must have written permission
* If using Creative Commons Music (CCM) on line, the music must be used in accordance with the appropriate license and properly attributed.
* Music may not contain offensive or suggestive language

#### Content Guidelines:

* Please show us what you are doing to earn the Chairman’s Award
* Please do not identify minors by full name, use only first names. Other required information to be given to the judges:
* Permission for *FIRST*to use your video in marketing & promotional material and/or live at *FIRST* events & competitions (Chairman's Award Video Use Consent Form)

#### DVD Requirements

* Ensure that your DVD is actually a DVD file, playable with a standard DVD player. If we cannot view your DVD, you may be ineligible for the award. Test your DVD before submitting it.
* DVD itself must be labeled with your team number and team name
* DVD case or envelope must also be labeled with your team number and team name
* A completed Chairman’s Award Video Use Consent Form must be folded and included in the DVD case or envelope.

#### USB Flash Drive Requirements

* USB Flash Drive must contain only the Chairman’s Award video file. Test that the file is playable before submitting the USB Flash Drive.
* Video file must be in the QuickTime (.mov) or windows Media (.wmv) file format compressed with the H.264/MPEG-4 codec
* USB Flash Drive itself must be labeled with your team number, at a minimum. If you have room, please add your team name as well. Consider using a label maker or a piece of tape and permanent marker. Ensure the label is secure and the team number is easily read.
* To reduce the chance of the USB Flash Drive being misplaced, the Drive must be placed in a clear, sealable plastic bag before it is given to the Judges. Label the bag with team number and name. This label may be a piece of paper, printed with the required information, inserted in the bag and oriented so it may be read without opening the bag
* A completed Chairman’s Award Video Use Consent Form must be folded and included in the plastic bag.

*Note: The Chairman’s Award is our highest honor and teams who receive the Chairman’s Award represent the highest standards of FIRST. When the Chairman’s judges have narrowed the selection to two or three teams, these contenders for the Chairman’s Award at all events will have their VIDEO viewed by the Judge Advisor for appropriate content and to ensure that the above guidelines have been met. Although the Chairman’s judges will not be judging your video as part of your submission, a VIDEO with inappropriate content will disqualify a team for the award.*

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## Regional/District Championship Chairman’s Award

Team’s that have earned the Chairman’s Award at a Regional or District Championship will be requested via email from *FIRST*HQ to submit a YouTube link of their official Chairman’s Award Video and presentation video for posting along with their online submission. These will be used as resources for current and future Chairman’s Award submitting teams. We want other teams to be able to see what it takes to be selected for this most prestigious award.

## The Chairman’s Award Championship Award Process

At the *FIRST*Championship, a panel of judges will interview teams and review the submissions from all the Regional and District Championship Chairman’s Award recipients and will select one winning Chairman’s Award recipient. This team has the additional honor of choosing one of its junior or senior student members to receive the Allaire Medal.

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