Chase Schechtman's Experience as Vice President

Who is Chase Schechtman?

Chase Schechtman is a sophomore attending Innovation Academy. He enjoys baking, consumer technology, and spending time outdoors engaging in activities such as camping and rafting. Chase joined the team in his freshman year and now is our vice president. Below are questions that he answered. 

Q&A

Q1: What got you interested in Techno Titans/robotics? 

“A classmate in middle school had a water bottle that said ‘Techno Titans’ on it, and she convinced me into joining an FTC that was mentored by Techno Titan members. This got me to acknowledge our team’s existence. Although my school currently has a robotics team, most of my friends at FTC were going to this team in high school, and I felt as if I was abandoning them by joining the team at my school. So, I joined the Techno Titans.” 

Q2: How would you describe your leadership role to someone unfamiliar with the role? 

“I act as a second voice to the president and sub-team leads. Or in other words, I give a second opinion to any questions about the robot or our team. In managing the team, I do similar things to our president, Emerson, like ensuring our team is working together.” 

Q3: Before joining the team, did you have any outside experience that prepared you for this leadership position? 

“No, I did not have any prior experience before this role. I was in the Boy Scouts, which somewhat prepared me. However, I believe that leadership is to be learned through exposure, so I hope to gain that throughout the year.” 

Q4: What are some personal goals that you want to achieve this season? 

“I would like to work on my communication skills and work ethic, getting things done faster for myself and talking with others more clearly. And to also work on my leadership ability, where I lead more in the back rather than actively bossing others around. I simply want to guide members through the process so they can do the task themselves.” 

Q5: What are some team goals that you want to accomplish this season? 

“For us to be even better than last year. Our team should engage more within ourselves, like putting in the work and showing up to more meetings. I think increasing collaboration can make members feel prouder in their work when they put in the effort.” 

Q6: How does attending Innovation Academy impact your experience of being a member of the Techno Titans? 

“Innovation Academy’s schedule ends later than Northview’s does, making me miss around the first hour of meetings. I feel this distances me from the team, and I miss the instructional time of our meetings. However, this forces me to stay for the building time and actually work on the robot. This gives me more of the FRC idea rather than just instructional time.”

Chase's passion for his team is evident throughout the interview, given his unique experience as team leader while attending another school. We're excited to see what he'll add to the team as vice president!