Rosie Robotics Co-Founder and Technical Advisor

Dana Henry has lived in Agawam, MA since 1985 has worked for Raytheon Technologies for 41 years, building and inspecting life support systems for NASA and the US Navy.. In 2002, Henry co-founded Rosie Robotics, FRC 839, with John Burns. Since then, Henry has expanded FIRST in all grade levels in Agawam, founded the Agawam Robotics Education Association, Inc. a 501(c) (3). Within FIRST Dana has served as organizer for FLL state qualifying tournaments, Senior New England FIRST Robotics Competition Lead Robot Inspector, Division Lead Robot Inspector at World Championships and FIRST Senior Mentor and the New England District Operations Committee. The FIRST Robotics program in Agawam has provided an opportunity for hundreds of kids to find out what they want to do with their future, either in engineering, entrepreneurship, teaching, manufacturing and many service industries.

President

Wendy Rua was born and raised in Agawam and is proudly raising her family here. Wendy has been affiliated with robotics since 2010, and has coached Junior and FIRST LEGO League Robotics teams and currently supports Rosie Robotics in FIRST Robotics Competitions. She works as a Program Coordinator at Mount Holyoke College and has served as a member of the Agawam School Committee since being elected in 2011. Her passion for robotics has a direct correlation to having seen the value of the hands-on enrichment this program offers which is far more than learning to build robots---- it's building the next generation of public speakers, marketing professionals, engineers, computer scientists, innovators and more!

Vice President

Bernie Saroglou has lived Agawam since 2004 and participated as a coach and mentor in FIRST Lego League since 2017 and now Rosie's Robotics in FIRST Robotics Competitions. He works as a program manager at General Dynamics Mission Systems (GDMS) where the Business Development and Management skills the team learns in Agawam Robotics are directly applicable. In addition he has worked in the Bluefin Robotics business area of GDMS where Technology skills the team learns in Agawam Robotics are directly applicable.

Clerk

Deanna LeBlanc has lived in Agawam since 2006 and participated as a parent in FIRST Lego League since 2018 and now as a mentor and parent for Rosie's Robotics in FIRST Robotics Competitions. In addition, Deanna is a coach for a FIRST Tech Challenge team, the Gateway Gearheads from Gateway Regional School District. She works as a Director of Curriculum, researching and making curricular decisions in STEM education throughout her work. She is also a certified Math Recovery Specialist and Math Recovery AVMR Champion, further supporting STEM education for all students.

Treasurer

Christina Fleagle has lived in Agawam since 2003 after relocating from California. She has volunteered as a coach and mentor in the FIRST Lego League, First Robotics Competition since 2014. Christina is now a volunteer and acting Treasurer for Rosie Robotics team 839 in the FIRST Robotics program. Christina works for The Center for Surrogacy and Egg Donation (CSED) which has no bearing on robotics, however she has worked for other volunteer organizations such as PTO and Cub/Boy Scouts for the past 9 years. The Robotics program is a huge asset to all students involved, teaching them life long skills, the importance of volunteering in the community, nurturing their love for STEM, and building lifelong friendships.

Rosie Robotics Faculty Advisor

Jack Barry has been a teacher since 1971 working 30 years in Holyoke Public Schools and has been a teacher in Agawam Public Schools since 2001. He currently teaches Tech Education at the Agawam Jr. High School where student learn engineering skills such as isometric drawing, computer aided design and usage of a variety of other tools. Jack has participated as the Faculty Advisor and mentor for Rosie Robotics since 2002 and continues to Build Futures. What he enjoys most about the program is seeing the kids grow over years where kids that may be quiet or shy are learning to work with and lead teams not only during their time at Rosie but as alumni have gone on to lead teams at NASA or Collins Aerospace. Rosie Robotics is an experience that you just won't get through High School only.

FIRST Liaison

Elizabeth Calef- Founding mentor of FRC 88 TJ² from Bridgewater, MA. Rookie year 1996-28^th year in FIRST. Chairperson of the WFA Committee. FIRST Senior Mentor for Eastern MA and RI. Physics Teacher and Science Dept Chair at Bridgewater Raynham Regional HS-33 years- retired June 2020.

FIRST is the most powerful program I have come across as a 33 year educator. I have seen my students grow, blossom, and succeed due to the skills and relationships they have developed through FIRST Robotics. I am proud to be associated with this program and I hope that we are able to keep it the strong and important program that Dean, Dr. Murphy, and Woodie had envisioned so long ago.

Kyle Henry

Kyle Henry was a member of both FLL and FRC from 2002 to 2004. He graduated in 2004 from Agawam High School and went on to pursue a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Northeastern University graduating in 2009. He currently works as a Systems Engineer at General Electric Aerospace leading the Heavy-lift Turboshaft Engines Platforms and for more information you can check out his LinkedIn profile. "My FLL and FRC experience has taught me problem solving and teamwork, coopertition, are at the heart of what I learned. Things like how to break down a problem into smaller tasks and work on and with a multidisciplinary team to solve them. I also learned a lot about how to design and manufacture components, including how to design for manufacturing so components are able to be fabricated. I learned a lot as a student in the program about design, manufacturing, and system integration. I learned even more as a mentor and volunteer, 2005 and on. Things like how to coach and mentor. How to teach someone to complete a task instead of doing it for them."

Andrew Tang

Andrew Tang was part of the FIRST Tech Challenge (2007-2009), and Rosie Robotics Team #839 FIRST Robotics Competition (2009-2013). Upon graduating from Agawam High School in 2013 he went on to graduate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2017 with a BS in Biological Engineering. He currently works as a Product Analytics Manager at Athenahealth and for more information you can check out his LinkedIn profile. "My FTC and FLL experience has taught me how to work on a team and with very tight project timelines in addition to analyzing metrics and articulating business values and decisions. I've recently moved back to Boston where I continue to volunteering for FRC events and have been since 2014. I'm always interested to chat with students about my career path and how my FIRST experience has helped me and encourage you to reach out at ahtang115@gmail.com."