Mentors
Dick Hurban
Dick Hurban is a FIRST Robotics and STEM Fanatic. He has been an engineer since “birth”. He has BS and MS degrees from Rutgers University in Agricultural Engineering. He has worked for John Deere as an Engine Engineer for 31 years. He became a FIRST mentor in 2008 when his daughter Jennifer joined Cedar Falls FRC team 525. In 2011 Dick began mentoring FTC teams in Waterloo, IA with Mr. Vaughn Gross. In September 2015 these two started Waterloo FRC Team 5837. Dick began volunteering for all FIRST programs in 2011 and has since volunteered at over 50 events. He was the recipient of the Hero Award from University of Northern Iowa’s Classic Upward Bound program in 2013 for his mentoring and dedication to challenging students to become engaged in FIRST and STEM. In 2015 he was named the John Deere Inspire Award winner for an Individual for his commitment to students and their participation in FIRST programs. He has been instrumental in the formation numerous FLL Jr., FLL, FTC teams and Unity4 Tech. At the inaugural Iowa FRC Regional in Cedar Falls, IA in 2016, Dick was named the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award winner. He is most proud of his family, all of whom mentor and/or volunteer for FIRST teams and at competitions. He expects one or more of his students to be involved in a Mission to Mars, work on a cure for cancer, earn a Nobel Prize.
Maggi Mills
Maggi was a machining engineer for John Deere at Engine Works for 18 years before leaving to start a family business. She worked in Machining and Quality for over 26 years at several companies. Maggi as her MBA from University of Iowa Tippe School of Business. She as a BS from Indiana State University in Computer Integrated Manufacturing Technology with an emphasis in Machining and an AS from Vincennes University in Robotics Technology. Maggi was first introduced to FIRST and FRC when her son joined FRC Team 648 Quad City Elite in 2006. She was a team “Mom” for several years. Maggi and her husband Joe started an FLL Team for the younger siblings of the QC Elite team members. They had FLL teams for 2 years. When she returned to the Cedar Valley in 2012 she started volunteering for the local FTC events as a judge and referee. Maggi is responsible for helping the team with the build and teaching them how to properly and safely use the equipment to manufacture the special pieces for the robot. She is passionate about being a mentor and having a positive influence on the student members of the team. Maggi especially wants to show the team that you need to dream big and work towards your goals.
Patrick Sedlacek
Patrick we would love your bio…
Jennifer Redfern
Jennifer is a graduate student at the University of Northern Iowa where she is currently pursuing her masters degree in Biology. She has been involved with FIRST for the last 9 years, first joining FRC Team 525 when she was a sophomore in high school and later became team captain her senior year. While earning her bachelor’s degree in Genetics at Iowa State University she volunteered as part of the Iowa FLL Regional Planning committee. She has been a team mentor for FTC Team 5445 since 2014 and a mentor for FRC Team 5837 since our inaugural year.
Students
Joe Evans
My name is Joe Evans, I am a senior at Waterloo West High School and this is my 5th year in FIRST, but my second in FTC. I joined Robotics for the thrill and joy that comes to me when making something with my hands from scratch, along with the fun that goes along with teamwork in a workshop environment. During the meetings I work as a safety captain because I got an OSHA certification in the construction industry and 3 precision measuring certifications as of writing this. An interesting fact about me is that I own a computer company named ARC (Advanced Recreational Computer) Systems and I do Parkour and game in my free time when I have the chance to do so.
Austin Wildeboer
My name is Austin I am a junior at East High School. I have been involved with FIRST for 6 years now. I got involved with robotics because of my engineering teacher in sixth grade was recruiting for a robotics team. My favorite part of robotics is driving/building the robot. This year I have been learning CAD and programing. Other than robotics I’m involved with baseball at East High.
Corwin Finch
My name is Corwin Finch, and I am a junior at West High. I have been in robotics since the seventh grade. I first joined robotics because it was something I had been interested in for a long time, and thought I could learn a lot from it while having a good time, and honestly I think I have been doing a pretty good job of that. Other than robotics I’m involved with concert choir, and enjoy spending time with my friends/family that I found at robotics. An interesting fact about me is that I used to be active in both gymnastics and dance.
Collin Yu
Hello, my name is Collin Yu and I am a student at East High School. I am 16 and currently a junior. I like to help out with the team in any way, whether being helping out drilling a part or helping come up with an idea. I am currently working on understanding Creo which is a program that lets me create models of things like our robot to parts we can 3D print.
Malachi Morris
My name is Malachi, I am in 10th grade at East High School. I’ve been in FIRST robotics for 4 years before this one. The coach from the previous school that I knew from my local church recommended that I should join. An interesting fact about me is that I can quote memes really well.
Seth Kimball
Hello my name is Seth. I am currently a sophomore at Waterloo East. This is also my second year in FIRST. What I do at robotics is I learn from others on a daily basis. I also try to learn programming while messing with 3D Modeling. Things I like to do out of robotics are hang out with friends and family, including watching my favorite team (The Vikings) with my family, and stay the night at my friends house. I also love video games.
Audrey Dillavou
My name is Audrey Dillavou and I have been in FIRST Robotics for 4 years now. I was introduced to this by my sister when I was in 8th grade now I am a senior at East High school. I have been in Classic Upward Bound (a college prep academic program) from 8th grade to now earning the valedictorian award my 3rd summer. That program has encouraged me to attend a 4 year college and potentially become a pilot.
Caleb Borwig
My name is Caleb Joseph Borwig. My favorite thing FIRST has to offer is the art of education and engineering. It’s my second year in the program and I have learned more than ever. I’m a sophomore at east high school and plan to attend a four year college. UNI-CUE is a program I enjoy that is very supportive of my education. I enjoy participating to make my community a better place.