Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in FIRST
#equityFIRST : pushing ed&i training in FIRST robotics programs
Email Template:
replace everything in [ALL CAPS] with your own information
To whom it may concern,
I'm [NAME] and I'm part of [PROGRAM + TEAM NUMBER]. In listening to my fellow FIRST participants' stories via dearfirstrobotics' Instagram submissions, I've realized how FIRST needs to improve in its treatment of at-risk groups. FIRST has done work including ED&I, but it needs to do more as a global organization. Equity is the only way to maintain sustainability, and this starts with putting ED&I at the forefront of the program. At the bare minimum, this means advertising it better by featuring the training in FIRST's newsletters, social medias, and website. Offering training means nothing if it can be so easily ignored, so students need to be strongly encouraged to at least look into the Inspiring Youth Voice training. Additionally, Inspiring Success training should be mandatory for all new and concurrent FIRST mentors, and volunteers. Some students may be ignorant because of their youth and they are a part of the problem, too, but mentors and volunteers are where these issues can be contained and stopped. They need to be trained to listen to minority voices and act accordingly. If ED&I training was required, firstinspires would just need to ensure that the participant's account was verified with a certificate before accepting them as a mentor or volunteer.
I believe in FIRST's core values and I believe that these core values cannot be maintained until we make it our mission to actively fight inequality. Because, if we aren't fighting against inequality, we are perpetuating it and are a part of the problem.
Thank you for your time. I'll be awaiting your response.
Sincerely,
[NAME]
Tips:
Make your email personal, don't just copy and paste. Reword the template to make it more "you." FIRST needs to recognize how many different voices are fighting for the same thing.
If you have a story, share it. It's worth listening to. You can submit anonymously to dearfirstrobotics as well.
Follow up on your email afterwards. Don't let them ignore you or get away with minimal response.
Make change within your own team! Encourage your mentors and teammates to take the training with or without it being required. Encourage them to write their own emails and sign the petition. Call out your teammates for their microaggressions. Change starts close to home.
Take care of yourself. You're doing great, just by being here, and we are so proud of you.
Lately, it has been made clear that vulnerable groups experience a lot of trouble within FIRST as a program, and too much of it can be attributed to mentors and volunteers. They should listen to the problems of these groups and know how to act accordingly because they drive the program and are our role models. Mentors are the backbone of this program, so they need to be closely monitored and trained.
Between Inspiring Youth Voices training and Inspiring Success training, FIRST actually does a pretty good job of explaining what equity is for a FIRST team. The problem is, these resources are not emphasized nearly enough. EquityFIRST hopes to push these resources to the front of FIRST and make training mandatory for the people leading our program. FIRST's core values include equity and inclusion. We're pushing those values.
Consider taking the time to read more about FIRST students' stories via dearfirstrobotics and understand the need for this effort.