Rob Mainieri
WFA Recipient · 2006
Rob Mainieri was awarded the Woodie Flowers Finalist Award at the Southern California Regional in 2003. He then went on to receive the Championship Woodie Flowers Award in 2006, while with FRC Team 812, The Midnight Mechanics, from San Diego, CA. Now entering his 31st FIRST® season, he has mentored and volunteered at events for FLL, FTC, and FRC. In that time, he has mentored FRC Teams 64, 498, 812, 991, 1266, 1538, 2375, 3170, and 6833. Additionally, he has also mentored FTC Teams 201, 202, 3737, 26983, and 30596. While with FRC 64, he created the then-infamous Gila Dance.
In 2002, while with The Midnight Mechanics, he and Team 812 founded the not-for-profit Team San Diego Robotics Coalition. This group accentuated the strengths of each team in San Diego and Riverside counties and synthesized a stronger, more cooperative team. The group was also responsible for the creation of the San Diego Regional, sponsored by Qualcomm. Rob also served as the first Chairperson of the San Diego Regional Organizing Committee.
At FIRST events, you will often find Rob working with kids, either as a coach or as a volunteer. In his spare time, Rob teaches Math at Metro Tech High School in Phoenix, AZ. He is a graduate from Rutgers University where he earned a BA in Mathematics. He also has an M.Ed. in Secondary Education with an emphasis on English Language Acquisition from Grand Canyon University.