New Hampshire

In New Hampshire, our goal is to continue state funding for all robotics teams through dedicated advocacy efforts. By uniting teams under a common cause, we aim to raise awareness about the invaluable impact of robotics education. Our mission is clear: to ensure that every robotics team in the state receives the financial support necessary for growth and sustained success.

Step 1: Training

In advocacy, the first step is learning the ropes. You can't make a difference in the system if you don't know how it works. Training is the toolkit that gives advocates the skills and know-how to speak up effectively, connect with others, and actually bring about positive changes. It's the starting point that lets people not just understand advocacy but actively take part in it.

Introduction

Presented by: Joseph Niski

Welcome to advocacy and why we are here

Advocacy 101

Presented by: Steve Hyer

Learn about what advocacy is, how to get started, and how to build relationships.

Download Presentation [PPT] [PDF]

Effective Meetings

Presented by: Steve Hyer

Learn how to prepare for your meeting, do's and don'ts of meetings, logistics, and following up afterwards.

Download Presentation [PPT] [PDF]

The presentation has great information. Steve's talk expands on the presentation with excellent examples and explanations to give richer meaning to the slides. If you only watch one video, watch this one!

Summary:

Steve offers advice on avoiding distraction from purpose, staying organized, coming across as Passionate, Polished, and Professional.
Reminder: Advocacy, foremost, is about building relationships.
Learn all you can about them
1. Do they have kids at your local schools?
2. What committees are they on?
3. What is their Professional training/interest/employment?
4. What legislation have they introduced?
Make a "leave behind" - one-pager on Self, team, why robotics is important (Editor's note: the Factsheet can be helpful here, but add personal/team impact. Later on, Steve suggests making up a business card with name, team, contact info.)
Goals: build a relationship, make them a fan of robotics, make an optional Ask.
There are good rules in slides for:
1. Managing in person meetings, especially with a time limit.
  - Be early
  - Dress and speak professionally - smooth hand-offs between presenters - don't contradict one another
  - Take notes
  - Practice
  - Stay on topic
  - Don’t answer questions you don’t know answers to: "I can get back to you on that."
  - Share your passion
  - Make team business cards, and ask for one in return.
2. Virtual meetings
  - Less desirable, but better than none.
  - Keep backgrounds clean, professional, and not distracting.
  - Have a facilitator who will start the meeting promptly when the legislator joins (to not waste time) and keep it moving forward smoothly.
  - One person per camera (not all in one room) and have camera off if you are not a designated speaker.
  - Have a predetermined order of introduction, since you aren’t in the same room, and so can't just go based on seating order, so things keep moving smoothly.
  - Have a few slides to support, but this is about the conversation, not a presentation.
    1. Who you (collectively) are
    2. Impact of Robotics Program
    3. What other states have done
    4. Your Ask

State Government 101

Coming Soon

How does a bill become a law? What is the process to make this happen?

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Education Funding

Coming Soon

Learn how funding goes from the state to your local school district.

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Step 2: Live Panel Discussion

On December 2nd, 2023 we held a live event where we invited former students from Michigan, Minisota, and Massachusetts to talk about their advocacy efforts. Through this dicussion you can learn key information about what to expect when you meet with your legislators and why it is important that we work together.

Step 3: Schedule Meetings

In New Hampshire we are focusing on the following:

Get your legislators to know about K-12 competition robotics
Ask them to continue funding Robotics Education Development Grants

Finding your legislators

Find My Legislator – Use this page to enter your address and it will give you both your members of the senate and the house.
All Senators
All Representatives

Meetings

The documents below will help you setup meetings and prepare you on what to talk about.

Sample Emails

Feel free to customize these Sample Emails to schedule your meetings with your legislators.

Talking Points

These talking points are useful to review to help give you some ideas of what you can talk about.

Step 4: Materials

You can print out these materials to hand out to your legislators.

FIRST Events

The FIRST Events printout can be used to invited your legislator to events.

The Southern New England Advocacy Conference was created in 2018 to get robotics teams in Southern New England to unleash the potential of advocacy in their state. In 2023 it was expanded to include all of New England and renamed States of New England Advocacy Conference.