The FRC mentor is a rare individual: possessing a great deal of skill and knowledge, all of which they patiently and generously share. If you happen to see one, be sure to thank them for their service. They are perhaps the last vestige of a past era in which knowledge was passed directly from expert to novice without the need for a surrogate, without the need for a premeditated sample pack of problems with known solutions, but instead done on the job, a true sharing of experience.
The mentors of Team 10257 proudly carry on this tradition and are key to making this program what it is.
Adam Spontarelli
Head Coach
Mr. Spontarelli is the coach of our FRC team. He co-founded Vector Space and focuses on coordinating our team of 14 students in building a competition-ready robot.
Adam has a collection of over 400 books on the American Civil War. He believes that it is difficult to see gradual progress when you’re in the midst of it.
Alan Thiessen
Software Mentor
Mr. Thiessen is a software engineer at L3Harris in Lynchburg, Virginia. He is one of the software mentors for our team, aiming to help produce a robot while learning good software design principles and standard development practices.
Mr. Thiessen enjoys snowboarding, photography, disc golf, and hiking with his dog, Brennan.
Ancel Carson
Mechanical Mentor
Mr. Carson works for Modine Manufacturing, and is one of our super structure mentors. He helps design, build, and calculate the scissor lift mechanism, among other areas.
Mr. Carson built a 1:1 replica of TARDIS (Time And Relative Dimension In Space) from Doctor Who.
Andrew Burks
Mechanical Mentor
Mr. Burks is self-employed and is the mentor for our drive train sub-team. Throughout the season, he’s been helping work on the drive train with several students.
Mr. Burks was also an FRC student in high school, from 2004 to 2008!
Elise Spontarelli
Viscomm Mentor
Mrs. Spontarelli co-founded Vector Space, and is the mentor for our VisComm sub-team. She has been focusing on the physical appearance of the robot, team members, and the pit with a group of students. She’s also helped with outreach efforts to help out the community and spread awareness and interest for our FRC team.
At home, Mrs. Spontarelli cares for 2 boys and 5 chickens.
Emily Griffen
Electrical Mentor
Ms. Griffen is an automation and controls engineer. She mentors the electrical sub-team by teaching the how to wire the robot, helped with crimping wires, and provided them with resources, such as diagrams to help wire the robot and ability to develop a diagram to show the wiring of the robot.
Ms. Griffen is an FRC Alum, competing from 2005 to 2008.
Jesse Hyatt
Software Mentor
Mr. Hyatt works for Electronic Design and Manufacturing, and he mentors the software sub-team, helping to diagnose and troubleshoot issues related to the software team’s responsibilities.
Mr. Hyatt is a triathlete!
Jonathan Skelton
Electrical Mentor
Dr. Skelton has worked in many fields—science and engineering among them—but teaching is his real passion. Skelton, who grew up in Farmville, graduated from Longwood University with a degree in chemistry and worked as an engineer, scientist, and middle school math teacher before earning his PhD in materials science and engineering.
In his free time he loves to spend time outdoors, sailing, playing chess, and bouncing his 2-month-old son.
Nathan Wyand
Software Mentor
Mr. Wyand works for CloudFit Software and mentors the software
sub-team. He mainly assists students as needed while they write drive and vision code for the robot.
One time, at a party, Nathan ate a Carolina Reaper. He lives to tell the tale.
Nick Lonce
Electrical Mentor
Mr. Lonce works at Framatome and mentors the research and development sub-team in the evenings. He has helped design and manufacture the claws for algae delivery on our robot, assisting the research and development team when necessary.
While Nick is an electrical engineer, he does more mechanical design. He prefers doing CAD in Solidworks over Onshape any day of the week.
Niemann Pest
Machine Shop Mentor
Mr. Pest is attending Virginia Tech to get his master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. He is self-employed. He is our machining specialist, assisting students, mainly the super structure team, when using machinery in the machine shop, such as mills and lathes.
Mr. Pest was a member of Unitus Racing, winning the F1 in Schools World Championship in Singapore in 2010.
Noah Godderz
Drive Team Mentor
Mr. Godderz is a student at Liberty University. He mentors the super structure sub-team, and is our drive coach at competitions. He was mainly assisting students with the engineering aspect of the scissor lift for the robot.
Mr. Godderz is an FRC Alum, having competed for team 8724 in high school for several years. He also has 3 3D printers in his dorm.
Peter Sheldon
R&D Mentor
Dr. Sheldon is Chair of the Physics department at Randolph College. He serves on the Vector Space Board of Directors, leads the Step-Up to Physical Science and Engineering at Randolph College (SUPER) program, and founded and organizes the annual Randolph College Science Festival.
He is passionate about community engagement, and has enjoyed working with FIRST Robotics Competition students.
Siavash Sattar
R&D Mentor
Dr. Sattar is a professor at Randolph College, teaching robotics and mechatronics engineering. He has worked primarly with the R&D subteam on team 10257.
Outside of the classroom, he enjoys staying active through hiking and exploring nature. He is also passionate about DIY projects, particularly those related to materials and engineering.