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2015 Rocky Mountain BEST Event Schedule
Teacher / Mentor Institute
2 days in late July or early August
Denver
TENTATIVE FALL EVENT DATES
Kickoff
12 September Saturday
Denver
Practice Day
17 October Saturday
Denver
24 October Saturday
Denver
We expect to finalize the dates very soon.
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Steering Team
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Carolyn Bauer-Hub Director, Game, Returnables
JoAnne Fry and Lori Lazuk-
Consumable Kits
Jose Lopez-School Interface
Linda King-Volunteer Interface
Linda Scott-Secretary, Awards & Judging
Lois Walton-Budget
MSU Students-Protobot
Patty Gaspar-Events
Scott McEwen-Venues
Board of Directors
Kathy Geise - President
Linda Scott - Vice President
Jose Lopez - Executive Director
Carolyn Bauer - Secretary & Hub Director
Lois Walton - Treasurer
Tim Bouvia - Director-at-Large
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Welcome to the February 2015 Rocky Mountain BEST Volunteer Newsletter. We are excited about the 2015 PAY DIRT game and getting YOU involved in all the fun. Learn more about this year's game and the schools signed up to participate in this newsletter.
Our tentative 2015 Saturday competition event dates in Denver are: Kickoff 12 September, Practice Day 17 October, and Game Day 24 October. Please SAVE these dates on your calendar! The dates are also listed in the left sidebar.
Boosting BEST Fundraiser was a great success despite the snow and ice. The money raised will help make it possible for Rocky Mountain BEST and Front Range BEST hubs to help hundreds of young people learn more about Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Thank you to all who braved the weather and special thanks to the volunteers, donors, and Oster Jewelers who made it all possible. See more about the fundraiser and additional ways to contribute in this newsletter.
See below for more information about volunteers needed in March for the Kit Team and to expand BEST competition in new areas of Colorado. Also, learn more about our 2015 Outreach plans.
And finally an update is included on the two additional Colorado BEST Hubs that will sponsor a competition in their communities in 2015 - Front Range BEST in Douglas County and SoCo BEST @Trinidad State in southern Colorado. . Please forward this newsletter to others who might be interested in Rocky Mountain (RM) BEST.  |
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2015 BEST Game - PAY DIRT
Registered Schools and Video Game Teaser, Lots More to Come
Teachers have started to sign up their teams for the 2015 PAY DIRT competition. We are working with Front Range BEST in Douglas County to register teams in the Denver Metro area. In addition, SoCo BEST @Trinidad State is talking with teachers in Southern Colorado. Rocky Mountain BEST is also talking with schools from other areas in Colorado.
Listed below is the current list of schools that have signed up to compete at Rocky Mountain BEST or Front Range BEST competitions.
- High Tech Early College - Denver
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Bear Creek High School - Lakewood
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Russell Middle School - Colorado Springs
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Battle Mountain High School - Edwards
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Thomas Jefferson High School - Denver
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DSST: Cole High School - Denver
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Broomfield High School - Broomfield
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Woodland Park Middle School - Woodland Park
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STEM Academy - Highlands Ranch
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Manning Middle School - Golden
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Mountain Vista High School - Highlands Ranch
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Ralston Valley High School - Arvada
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Innovation Center of the St. Vrain Valley School District - Longmont
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Standley Lake High School - Westminster
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St. Mary's Academy - Englewood
 | | 2015 BEST Game Teaser |
Our national organization, BEST Robotics Inc. (BRI), has released the 2015 BEST Game Teaser. Check out the 48 second PAY DIRT video via the box to the left or this YouTube LINK .
For additional PAY DIRT game hints, the 14 sets of weekly bESTology educational activities web postings started on 25 January. Check out the posting at This bEStology LINK.
Our volunteers leading the work on preparing for our PAY DIRT games are excitedly reading the draft rules and reviewing the draft game field drawings released this past week. These volunteers will learn more about this year's game during the BRI March Prototype Kickoff and video presentations and later at the BRI April Prototype Game Weekend in Kansas City.
The full details of the PAY DIRT game will be revealed to the student teams at the September Kickoffs.
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2015 Boosting BEST Fundraiser
Thanks to all who made the Fundraiser a Great Success!
 Rocky Mountain BEST and the new Douglas County Hub, Front Range BEST, received a financial BOOST towards providing their FREE robotics competitions to local schools in 2015!
It was a fun evening with hors d'oeuvres, a silent auction,  wine tasting, a light dinner with cooking demonstration by Chef Greg Boynton with St. Mary's Academy and STEM  Academy students demonstrating their team robots.
If you were unable to attend and would like to contribute, please write a check to Rocky Mountain BEST and indicate it is for the Annual Fundraiser and the hub you are supporting. Send your check to:
- Rocky Mountain BEST
- PO Box 3135
- Littleton, CO 80161-3135
Thanks to the 90 folks who navigated snow and ice to attend including 12 students, teachers, and mentors. And special thanks to our fantastic underwriter, Oster Jewelers, and Builders Appliance Center  who provided their facility, and the donors of over 300 items and the 25 volunteers who made this all possible.
 WOW! Sabina Kilpatrick led the volunteer group to create our highly successful fundraiser supported by Carolyn Bauer,  JoAnne Fry, Patty Gaspar, Greg and Donna Gerlich, Jan Gorski, Phil Hardy, Bruce Kilpatrick, Lindsay Kilpatrick, Michelle Nims, Joel & Tami Kirkland, Linda & Mike King, Lori Lazuk, Stephanie Mann, Art Maples, Beverly & John Nussbaumer, Gary Pratt, Linda Scott, Aidan  Thomas, Michelle Thomas, and John & Lois Walton.
THANK YOU ALL for supporting BEST!
We are still tabulating the fundraising results with the added Boost of our 2 generous matching donors. Further details will be provided in our March Newsletter and on our website www.rockymountainbest.org.
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Volunteers Needed Near Term
Kit Team Volunteers and Help Start a New Hub
 Monday Kit Team: The Kit Team is working on returned 2014 kits to prepare for 2015 kit activities and labeling BEST BUY grant kits. They meet most Mondays at 999 Vallejo St #2 Denver near I-25 and 8th Avenue from 10 AM - 3 PM with a lunch break at a local restaurant. They can always use an extra hand and no experience or specific skill is needed. If interested, please contact Carolyn at [email protected] for more information.
NEW BEST Robotics Hub in 2016: We are working with individuals in the Pikes Peak and Central Colorado areas about starting additional Colorado BEST hubs in 2016. Please contact me at [email protected] if you, friends, or family are interested in working with these individuals to establish new BEST hubs in these locations.
Front Range BEST Hub Volunteers - The new Front Range BEST hub needs volunteers to help their Hub Development in Douglas County. Please contact Tami Kirkland at [email protected] if you, friends, or family are interested in working with this great group bringing another BEST competition to the Metro Denver area.
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2015 Community Outreach Tentative Plans
Introducing BEST to Colorado
We are pulling together plans for our 2015 Community Outreach. Below is a list of our currently planned events. More information will be available in future newsletters about these Community Outreach Events.
 Robotics at the Hangar, Sunday, April 12, Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum, Denver.
Girls in the Middle Conference, Friday, April 17 9am-3pm, Trinidad State Junior College, Trinidad.
Youth of the Earth Festival with New Vista High School, Wednesday, April 22, Boulder County Fairgrounds, Longmont.
  Erie Air Fair, Saturday, August 8, Erie Municipal Airport, Erie, OR Rocky Mountain Air Show, May 29-31, Aurora Reservoir, Aurora.
Share Fair Nation's STEMosphere, September, University of Denver, Denver.
Colorado Space Business Roundtable (CSBR) Road Trip, September, Colorado Front Range Cities.
Colorado Science Conference, November, Denver Mart, Denver.
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Rocky Mountain BEST Donation Opportunities
Ways to help make the 2015 BEST Competition FREE to Schools
 AmazonSmile is the same Amazon you know - same products, same prices, same service. Whenever you shop on AmazonSmile, Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to Rocky Mountain BEST, (Centennial CO).
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 To get started, click on the "Shop at AmazonSmile" box on the right to logon to Amazon Smile with your existing Amazon account. - If you do not see Rocky Mountain BEST, you can select "Rocky Mountain BEST (Centennial, CO)" after signing in.
- You'll receive an email confirming you are signed up.
- Once signed up, you'll be reminded of the donation with a "Supporting: Rocky Mountain BEST" in the upper left-hand corner of the screen each time you logon at www.smile.amazon.com.
 Benevity - If your company has gift matching through Benevity, Rocky Mountain BEST is one of the eligible non-profit organizations. Please check with your company about gift matching!
 If you have a Rocky Mountain BEST King Soopers Gift Card, King Soopers will donate 5% of EVERY gift card purchase -- including card refills -- to Rocky Mountain BEST... all at no cost to you -- FOREVER! Everyone needs groceries and gas. Remember to use your Rocky Mountain BEST Gift card to benefit Rocky Mountain BEST. It's really easy.
You can also donate to Rocky Mountain BEST at Rocky Mountain BEST at ColoradoGives.org.
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Two New Colorado Hubs Up and Running
Front Range & SoCo BEST @Trinidad State to Host BEST Competitions
Front Range BEST will host a BEST competition in Douglas County. They are working to set their 2015 competition schedule and venues. Teachers and mentors from their competition will be invited to the joint Rocky Mountain and Front Range BEST Teacher / Mentor Institute tentatively planned for late July. Check out their website at http://www.frbest.org for more information..
 SoCo BEST @Trinidad State will host their competition events at Trinidad State Junior College supporting southern Colorado schools. Teachers and mentors from their competition will be invited to a Rocky Mountain BEST supported BEST Teacher / Mentor Institute tentatively planned for early June. Their website should be available in March. For more information, contact Jenn Swanson at [email protected].
More to come in future newsletters. |
| Rocky Mountain BEST would not be successful without you! We are looking forward to working with you in 2015 with the PAY DIRT game.
Sincerely,
Linda King
Volunteer Interface, Rocky Mountain BEST
 
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