OpenAlliance Build Blog
We created a public build blog for several reasons - primarily, we believe that having documentation is beneficial long-term for both people in and out of the team. Plus, for families, friends, teachers, and sponsors, being able to follow the team makes it feel much more personal. Additionally, we are transparent about our progress, sharing both the good and the bad, so others can learn from what we encounter and struggle with throughout the season.
Mentoring FLL Teams
Currently, we mentor at three different elementary and intermediate public schools in Houston, Texas. Every one of us has had fantastic experiences with FIRST, and we need to share that with the children in our community. We understand that by mentoring FLL teams we are encouraging future STEM leaders.
COVID-19 PPE
During the unpredictable havoc of the COVID-19 pandemic, we were able to have an amazing, positive impact on the lives of so many. With schools opening up Fall of 2020, we saw a great need for ways to reduce the spread of COVID-19. We designed and manufactured contact-free hand sanitizer pumps for each teacher in Conroe ISD for students to disinfect their hands. As well, our team produced face shields for the courageous and selfless responders to keep them safe from the virus. So many people in our community have contributed to our PPE efforts and helped make a real difference in this world.
Robot Demos
We do demonstrations of our robot to our school for our team so we can connect with the students in our school who express an interest in STEM. Our goal is to encourage our classmates to learn more about robotics and what CavBots represents.
YMCA Gift Wrapping
We volunteered with the YMCA at a local church to wrap presents for those in need. Our goal is to make a positive impact in our community and the world around us, and helping out at the YMCA was a way of furthering that goal.
Cars and Coffee
We put on a demonstration of our robot at Woodforest Bank Stadium during the Cars and Coffee car show. We were able to introduce many of our peers to STEM and robotics, which drummed up interest in our team as well as STEM as a whole.
SNHS Day Camp
We participated in a day camp for local schoolchildren in order to educate these young people about our team, what we do, and STEM as a whole.