Eagle
Engineering

The Intensive is our annual four-day team-building event that focuses on welcoming our newest members, lovingly referred to as rookies. This is a time for our veteran members to demonstrate servant leadership at its finest as they plan and execute a fully developed program aimed at getting rookies fully immersed in the Team 1138 culture and having some fun with robots along the way.

Intensive Weekend is
Sept 4-7, 2025

What is the Eagle Engineering Intensive?

This is one of our biggest, most valuable, most fun, and most exciting team-building events of the year. Produced exclusively for the benefit of our rookies, veteran and returning team members take them on a crash course of team culture, storytelling, bonding, great food, and, of course, robots. Yes, it is a lot of hours, but ask anyone who’s been through it and they’ll tell you it’s worth it. If you cannot attend all of it, please come as much as you can. The most important days are Friday and Saturday.

The Intensive takes the entire team through the comprehensive tournament experience in just four days. Along the way, we share team traditions, stories, and key aspects of our team culture that make Eagle Engineering so special.

Schedule

Thursday, Sept 4
3:15-7:30
Getting Started

‘Bot and Team Building

We split into small teams and speed-build a basic clawbot. By the end of this meeting, all teams should have completed their claw-bot build and come up with a fun team name. Returners (2nd-year members) lead the clawbot teams and share their experience from the previous year. Throughout the build, we get to know our rookies a little better.

Friday, Sept 5
3:15-6:30
Eat, Play, Love – a good movie

3:15- 6:30 Round 1 matches, minor mods, PHOTOS & Icebreakers
  • We play a mini-tournament with the claw-bots.
  • The focus is on teamwork and strategy
  • Teams identify needs and plan improvements
  • Teams get one hour to make a minor modification
  • Throughout, team leaders share fun team traditions and entertain
  • Individual team member portraits will be taken
6:30-8:30 Dinner, GAMES, and Team Trivia
  • We all eat dinner together at our one-family table. Dinner is provided by a veteran family.
  • Parent volunteers would be especially welcome at this point to support the team with cleanup and meal service.
  • After dinner and cleanup, we do team trivia and story hour hosted by student leadership.
  • Other mini-activities TBD
8:30- 11:38 Movie Night in the BHC
  • The team gets comfy (see below)
  • We watch an engineering-themed film and enjoy fresh-popped popcorn and movie treats.
  • On the road, our curfew is 11:38 PM, so that’s our out-the-door time. Depending on the movie, however, we should probably be out a little before that.

BRING CUSHY STUFF FOR THE TEAM MOVIE

The Bob Hope Center isn’t exactly a cozy space, but you can fix that with your favorite beanbag, air mattress, beach chair, or blanket and cushions. Bring items to the team room before class in the morning. In past years, some students have even brought their most comfy PJs to change into. Keep it appropriate, and we are all for it!

Saturday, Sept 6
10:00 AM – 8:30 PM
It’s a Family Tradition

Parent meet & Greet, Major Mods, IRHS awards, PHOTOS, and Team BBQ

Saturday is a huge day for Intensive. This is the exact schedule we run during build season, and it’s where all the memories (and leaps in robot progress) are made. Yes, it’s a long day, but believe it – time flies when you’re having fun!

10:00 – 11:00 AM – Parent Meet & Greet
  • As the students jump back into their work, parents are invited to join some of our Mentors for light
    refreshments and learn more about the parent experience with Eagle Engineering.
  • See the machine shop, team room, and erstwhile robot factory floor (AKA the cafeteria)
10:00 AM – 6:00 PM – Major Mods and team culture
  • Teams design major modifications and spend the day building and testing them.
  • Throughout, rookies learn the expectations, traditions, and, yes, memes that come with being an Eagle Engineer
  • Individual team member portraits
  • Lunch, provided by a veteran family, is at 12:30 PM.
  • Extra parent volunteers are needed for the rest of the afternoon while Tommy is out preparing the BBQ dinner.
6:00 Team BBQ Dinner and IRHS Awards

6:00 PM Team BBQ and IRHS Awards (International Robotics Honors Society)

  • Our annual Eagle Engineering Intensive Saturday dinner features Tommy’s South Carolina barbecue at the “one team – one family” table.
  • The main course is pulled pork, but we will have a limited amount of chicken and grilled cauliflower, also drenched in Stacy’s Secret Sauce, for those who do not eat pork or meat, respectively.
  • Dessert is Tommy’s famous Banana Pudding.
  • Last year’s underclassmen inductees to the International Robotics Honor Society (IRHS) are recognized.
  • After cleanup, we finish and test the major mods.

*** IRHS ***

Parents, if your child is being inducted into the International Robotics Honor Society for the 2025-2026 school year, please join us for dinner and the award presentation.
An email will be sent to you if your child was accepted to the IRHS.

Sunday, Sept 7
1:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Bringing it Home

Sunday is for wrapping up the tournament and solidifying our bond as one big Team 1138 family. From this point forward, students and parents alike will understand what it really means when we say, “One Team, One Family.”

1:00 – 6:00 Robotics Tournament, alliance selection, and Finals
  • A full tournament featuring the major mod robots will be played, including alliance selection, elimination rounds, and awards.
  • New parents are encouraged to arrive around 5:00 to see some exciting robotics gameplay.
5:30 – 7:00 PM Parent meeting and Clean-up
  • Come to the Bob Hope Center by 5:30 PM, and take care of forms, fees and volunteer clearances. Then stock up on team merch. This year we will have tap-to-pay!
  • We will walk to the Condon Center together for a parent Meeting in the Media Center – ALL PARENTS ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND (New, Returning, Veteran)
  • As the parents meet, the students clean up the BHC.
  • Students who participate in the tournament are expected to stay and clean up. No early departures. You attend or don’t attend. It is considered rude to play and then ditch the clean-up part.
  • Parents will have an opportunity afterwards also to complete all the forms, make fee payments, and buy extra team merch.

NEW FOR PARENTS THIS YEAR (TENTATIVE)

FAMILY FEUD Follow-Up Weekend!
Saturday, Sept 13
1:00 – 4:00 PM
**TENTATIVE**

Why should the kids have all the fun?

Our parent participation is second to none, and it is the rocket fuel to our team’s success. But what if you don’t know anything about robotics competition? This mini-event is an opportunity to jump in and experience both the fun of robotics and meet other parents.

Students and parents will pair up to form a team and get to play the game with other family duos or trios. We’ll have snacks and stories from veteran families, similar to what we do in the Intensive.

This is a new idea, and we are still working out the details, so stay tuned!.