Frequently Asked Questions

  • FIRST does not limit the number of students we can accept!

  • All high school students (grade 9-12) are welcome to join. If a younger student is interested, please reach out anyway and we will be happy to put you in contact with other teams in the area who are better equipped to accept younger students.

  • Our team accepts all students living in the Blue Valley School District. Most of our members attend one of the 5 BV High Schools, but we have had and are happy to welcome students who are homeschooled or from other schools within the Blue Valley district.

  • No, unfortunately we cannot allow students to participate if they live outside of BVSD. However, there are many other teams in the KC area and we will be happy to connect you with one who is in your district! 

  • Yes! The Metal Mustangs fully support the coopertition of all FIRST leagues. We have a few current students who also participate on a FIRST Tech Challenge team. If you would like to get in touch with one of the 6 Blue Valley FTC teams, please let me know.

  • You do not! CAPS is a wonderful program and we encourage all students to review it as an option, but this is not a requirement for joining the team. However, if a member is in CAPS, working on the robot can be considered your project for the semester.

  • Students will not be charged a membership fee for joining, but we are a partially self-funded team. We rely on the support of our parents/guardians and our community to provide the best learning opportunities. Specific needs will vary year to year, but we often ask for additional assistance with transportation/lodging costs for out of state competitions, snacks and meals for the students during build season, and additional adult supervision for larger events or carpools as needed.

  • No problem, that's exactly what we're here for. Every single student and mentor on our team started without previous knowledge on how to build a robot. Now, we have many students, mentors, and parents who are able to utilize their professional and personal skills to teach you. If we don't know something, we'll work through it together until we both know. It can be intimidating to try something new for the first time, but we are fortunate enough to have the materials and machinery for "on-the-job" training. The best way to learn is to jump right in!

  • Come anyway! There is so much more to FIRST than just the robot build; we are always looking for students with all interests, skills, and backgrounds. Let us know what your interests are and we almost certainly have a way to both improve our team and give you experience.

    A few non-robot specific needs are:

    • T-shirt Design (we make a new game-themed t-shirt each year!)

    • Web Design

    • Social Media Management

    • Business/Public Relations

    • Finance/Budgeting (can be supplemental information for judged awards)

    • Creative and professional writing 

    • Competitive Essay Writing/Public Speaking (judged award)

    • Photography/Videography

    • Project/Construction Management

    • Digital Animation (judged award)

  • Absolutely! All of our meetings are open to all students and parents who are interested. It can be difficult to describe the wide range of skills and opportunities that FIRST and CAPS provide our team, so the best way is to show you!

  • Click here and subscribe to our Team Calendar! This will allow you to follow the latest updates on meeting dates, FIRST deadlines, and events we are attending. You may also join our discord where we sometimes send unofficial team announcements and where the students can collaborate remotely. Discord Announcements