The   Mentors

PictureDoc Santrock
Fabrication Mentor, Dr. Jeff Santrock PhD
​is a chemist retiree from General Motors. He joined the team as a mentor in 2011, the same year his son joined. Mr. Santrock has been one of our most involved mentors, present at every competition, and always helping the team to build better 'bots.

PictureMr. Rogers
Controls Mentor, Mike Rogers
​is a retiree from the GM research and development labs as a research technician. He works in electronics and instrumentation. He hopes to help our controls group with the code and the hardwiring on the robot. He is also a '75 graduate of Grosse Pointe North.

PictureMr. Rigotti
​Mentor, Matthew Rigotti​
​is a retired project manager at Hella Electronics.  He led development teams that designed and launched new products.  What he would like to impart in the Gearheads is an understanding that everything they do can either add or detract value from the team
PictureMr. Howes
Controls Mentor, Jack Howes
is a retired engineer and manager from General Motors. He mostly contributes with the controls sub team. He first began mentoring in 2015, and he continues to mentor because as he says, "I like working with first because it seems like a win for everyone involved." He contributes to the FIRST community by volunteering as a robot inspector at FIRST competitions.
 PictureKAM
Media and Technology Mentor, Eric Kam
​is an engineer working as Product Marketing and Community Manager for ESI, a computer simulation and engineering software company. He works with a variety of industries applying virtual reality simulation software for engineering
​and design validation. He is the Social Media and content
marketing lead.  He travels lots.
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PictureNick
Build Mentor, Nick Santrock
is a Gearhead's alumni who graduated Grosse Pointe North in 2015, and has been involved with the team since he joined in 2011. He currently works as a mechanic at a local auto repair shop. As build mentor,   he hopes to help the students apply the theoretical knowledge learned in classes to real world scenarios and gain hands-on experience with complex integrated systems.
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PictureAnna
Media Mentor, Anna Karcher
​is a Gearhead’s alumni who graduated Grosse Pointe South in 2015. She joined the team as a mentor in 2022, but was also a member from 2011 – 2015. She aims to guide the current members through the joys of media and help them maintain brand consistency. 
PictureMr. Hays
Build Mentor, Steve Hays
is an Intellectual Property Attorney with Howard & Howard. He began mentoring when his son, Robert, was team captain. He enjoyed helping out and interacting with kids and their families, this led him to stay on as a build mentor even after his son's graduation. He fosters a friendly and encouraging environment in the Gearheads shop​, hoping to continue inspiring students to work on innovative projects.