Upper School FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) Team Coach - Fall 2026

Cape Henry Collegiate • Virginia Beach, VA

5d

About The Position

The Cape Henry Collegiate (CHC) Lower School is a vibrant and caring school community. Coaches/Mentors are valued and important members of the Upper School Team at CHC. We seek Coach/Mentor wishing to support a classroom teacher in providing an exemplary educational experience in support of our school mission statement and core values. This is a STIPEND position. A dedicated mentor responsible for guiding students through a series of after-school sessions to prepare team members for the FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) season and its culminating competitions. FTC teams design, build, program, and iterate on a competition robot while developing collaboration, engineering, and leadership skills. Sessions will begin in early September and continue through the competition season. Practices will take place on Tuesday and Thursday from 3:30 to 5:00 PM. Note: Coaches are required to attend two Saturday or Sunday local qualifying competitions, typically held between November and January. If the team qualifies for advancement competitions (i.e. regional championship), the team will continue meeting to prepare for those events. Some weekend or extended time commitments may be required during peak competition periods. This role is ideal for educators or mentors who enjoy hands-on learning, engineering challenges, and empowering students to think critically and work collaboratively.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with the STEAM Director on meeting agendas, lesson plans, and the overall season timeline.
• Guide students through the engineering design process, including brainstorming, prototyping, testing, iteration, and documentation.
• Support students in building, wiring, and programming an FTC competition robot using approved hardware and software tools.
• Facilitate teamwork, problem-solving, and effective communication within the team.
• Teach and model FIRST Core Values, including collaboration, inclusion, gracious professionalism, and perseverance.
• Support students in maintaining an engineering notebook and preparing for a judges interview.
• Prepare students for FTC competitions by supporting match strategy, robot refinement, and team readiness, ensuring a positive and enriching experience.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Part-time
• Education Level: No Education Listed