All right. Welcome, everyone, to our…
session today, a second session of the day, for WordPress Campus Connect.
Um, I'm here to tell you all about what this exciting new initiative is.
And, um, during the presentation today,
You're free to…
you know, stop me to ask a question if something's unclear, or you can type out your question.
Um, or you can wait until the end.
Either way works for me. Um, I'll just ask, while you're not…
um, asking a question to mute your mic so we don't get any background noise.
So I'm going to mute folks right now.
Thank you.
Okay. So yes, let us get into it. Let me get my little speaker notes open, too. That would be helpful, wouldn't it?
So today, as I said,
Gonna walk you through what the Campus Connect event series is.
I will also talk about how you can organize these events.
I'll talk about how you could potentially sponsor these events, and then, um, I'll also share at the end a bit of time… a bit of information about some other exciting education initiatives that are
going on right now in the WordPress space.
So yeah, what is WordPress Campus Connect?
So, it's essentially an official WordPress event series that brings the WordPress community
directly to educational institutions,
Um, around the globe, and I'm very specific here when I say educational institutions, because
It could be high school, could be college, it could be a technical school.
We want to be inclusive of all types of campuses that are available for students to learn at, so…
Um, don't be discouraged if you're like, oh, but I'm, you know, I'm teaching at a high school, or, you know, that's where I want to…
pitched this event, that is totally fine. Wherever students aggregate at their campus, that's where we want to go to them.
Um, and why are we doing this? Uh, we being volunteers within the WordPress community,
Um, why are we doing this? It's to engage with students on their own campuses,
you know, meet them… meeting them where they are.
And these events are focused on teaching them valuable skills in WordPress over either a half day, a full day, or some events run over multiple days.
And multiple campuses. Um, but the end goal here is to leave each participant with tangible outcomes to empower their future success with WordPress.
So, for example, I want to share a bit about, like, a typical event structure that we've seen.
We've had events occur, as I said, over one day, three events over a month, or…
even, um, 6 events over a month,
all on different campuses.
And we've really opted to leave the event format flexible for organizers, still providing guidance in case, you know, folks want to
have a structure to follow, but leaving that flexibility so that they can design events that best fit the needs of their students and the capacity of the organizers themselves.
Um, so to give you an idea of a previous event,
structure on this slide here.
you could potentially start out with a morning session that's sharing about the fundamentals of WordPress,
What is open source? What is a CMS? And talk about the community.
Um, a little break, and then in the afternoon,
start getting the students into the software, helping them build their first website, and potentially saving time for them to showcase what they've built with each other.
So, this is a structure that has
it's been really repeated so far. It's pretty simple, it's a one-day thing, and the students come away with something to showcase later.
And as events mature, they often…
return to the same, um, campus.
Campuses offering more advanced lessons in WordPress. So, for example, at WordPress Campus Connect Ajmir, this year, they had their first one last year.
Um, they…
showcased last year beginner WordPress workshops to the students, and then this year, they've returned to some of the same campuses they were with last year to, um,
teach more intermediate learning content to students. So, it really is up to you.
how you'd like to structure these, but especially if you're planning to continually provide, um, these events for a certain campus, you can think about a structure where you're leveling the students up,
Um, every time the event occurs.
At the end of the event as well, many organizers opt to print and hand out certificates of participation to the students to commemorate the event.
Uh, and just also leave the students feeling a further feeling of accomplishment for their participation.
So these assets are readily available to you as the organizer, um,
to use. Some folks
We're signing them themselves,
we also have a process where if you would like, the, um, executive director of the WordPress Foundation, um, Mary Hubbard, will sign them for you, and you can hand those out to the students at your event.
So, I do want to share a bit of the numbers here, like, what is the impact that we've had so far?
Um, and I wasn't clear at the beginning that this event became a Civit series became official in May of
This year, although there have been many education events that have happened within WordPress communities before, this WordPress Campus Connect
kind of, like, brand is, um, new and became official at the end of May.
So, to date, you can see that there has been a lot of, um, excitement and events that have reached a lot of students.
Um, we've had 6 events conclude, um, around Costa Rica, India, Spain, and the Philippines.
And events are either scheduled or in planning in other countries, inclusive of those that I just mentioned, but also Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Ukraine.
And I wanted to note that
Some events are a series, so…
These are events that will be maybe a month or a little longer, and…
folks will go to different campuses along the way.
So, across all of these events, we've had attendance of over 1,700 students so far.
Um, which is pretty amazing, and the series…
Right? There's a… I want to point out that there's another series going on right now in
Jinja, Uganda, as well as Ajmir, and a couple other areas. Um, but in Jinja, they're bringing WordPress to 12,
campuses for during their event.
So the really… the only limit is your time.
Uh, and then I wanted to share a few little pictures here.
of some of the events that took place.
And then I'm going to dive into…
How you can organize.
what that process looked like.
especially if you're new to the WordPress community, um, I think our tools can seem a bit different.
Or maybe a little intimidating, you know, you just don't know what to expect when you press that application send button. So, um…
going here… from here, I'm gonna showcase how to apply, and also give a demo of what that looks like once you've
sent the application in.
But first, who organizes these events? I lightly noted that earlier, like, this is a volunteer-run,
um, event series.
And…
The first one was put on last year by community member Anand Fadeh,
in, um, Azure, India, and since then,
it has expanded to emphasize that anyone can organize these events, so you don't have to be a local community member who's already in a meetup group, for example.
You could be a, um, faculty member at your university, you could be a student, you could be a hobbyist of WordPress who
is thinking about their, you know, their alma mater or their high school where they went to, and wanting to bring this opportunity to the students. So, we've really tried to simplify the application process and reduce barriers so that we can get a diverse group of folks
Um, to be able to put on these events and reach as many students as possible.
And I did want to note, although, I'll be on this page, um, although it is not a requirement to be an active member of the local community, we still do encourage you to
look out and see who's active in your community, because they might become your, um, best facilitators and advocates for running these events. There's a lot of professionals, you know, and subject matter experts, so if you're looking to put on an event in your area, but you're like, huh, I really…
would like someone to speak about SEO, and maybe I don't have that particular expertise, and we don't. Um, looking into your local community to gain that
Um, particular member who could provide that, uh, is a great way to not only connect with them, but
Um, you know, simultaneously build that relationship with the campus and the local community itself.
Alright, so what do you need for your event?
First, a venue, your campus. Typically, these events are put on at the campus that you're hoping to engage the students on, meeting them where they are, um, and so that would mean
Hopefully that space is free to you to use.
You'll also need an event plan.
What are you going to do when you've got the students captivated? Um, I shared that example of a format. Is it going to be a one-day event?
Where you start with the foundations, and then you work into site build. Make sure you have a plan in mind.
You'll also want to have a team of organizers and facilitators. Some of these events, um, one day alone will have over 100 students, so…
You know, you'd probably want at least two to three people on the ground there to help facilitate and organize to make sure it's a successful event.
Also looking for local or in-kind sponsors.
Um, every… I'm gonna get into this a little bit more later as well, but every…
WordPress Campus Connect event has, um, $300 that is given to them from our global sponsorship program to
provide certain things for the event itself. This could be, like, snacks, or, um…
maybe we needed to pay for, like, the Wi-Fi for the day.
things like this to just help
the event run a little smooth.
And then, lastly, you're gonna need students to teach something to.
Okay, so let me show you all a little bit of what this organization
process looks like. You'll first go to Apply,
on our site here, I'm going to share the link in the chat as well.
And fill out this application.
It'll have a space for details about you, it'll also have a space for details about the event itself,
you know, sharing your plan, where it's going to be held,
And once you hit the submit button on this, it'll essentially go to our inbox, where our community program supporters can come and vet your application.
So there will be an email that goes out to us, and a back and forth will begin.
Once your application is approved,
You'll receive an email, and I did this so that I could see what this looks like.
Um, but as you can see, there's a lot of things linked in this email for you to take advantage of.
So, this will essentially tell you your site for your event, each site, uh, each event has a site created for it.
And it'll also give you supporting
um, information about
um, running the event itself.
So once you've gotten this email,
You're gonna jump into…
your site, and I'll show you what that looks like right now.
And I just need to switch my screen.
Okay, so my application has been accepted. The wonderful program supporters and the community team of WordPress
have made this site for me,
And now I've landed here. What are the key areas we want to look at here?
Um, one of those…
is definitely the, um, organizers section, so you can fill out information.
about any organizers that are with you,
speakers, um…
that you might be having.
And also the budget, which we'll get into in a moment.
Um, but what else will happen is they'll add you to this site, your event site itself, but then you'll also get an invite to a site called WordCamp Central.
And when you go here, you'll have been added to a, um, what we call event tracker.
that is for your site alone. So, you'll see here, I've jumped into the
WordCamp Central site that I've been invited to, I went to WordCamps,
And then I see my site, the WordPress Campus Connect.
presentation. Um, this is a tracker, and then this is the site URL.
What I'll jump into is the tracker.
And from here, I'm kind of just talking to myself, but you'll see…
revisions and such from, um, the
program supporter here, but what you'll want to do as an organizer is just fill out the details of this event a little further. Some will be pulled in from your application, so you'll see here the start dates there,
the location, um, and then…
they have created the site, so that is already available. But you'll want to go through and see there's things that are required.
Um, please fill that out so that we can, um, work through your application process… your application.
Um, especially this…
organizing team section.
Um, you'll be the main…
organizer, typically, when you submit the application, so your information will be here, and then you'll fill this out.
And then for any other information that's needed,
Um, you'll see here, there's a status on the right.
the person supporting you might request more information. This will be handled
via email back and forth.
Um, and then as you go through and, you know, respond to them, fill out information, um, we'll work our way to scheduled.
To make that happen, however, there's one other thing I want to show you, which can be, I think, a little tricky.
But let me switch. We're going to talk a little bit about
a budget.
Here we are.
Sorry about that. So, switching over…
So I lightly noted earlier that each event is guaranteed, each Campus Connect event, um, is guaranteed $300,
Her campus, I do want to clarify there, so…
Remember I said there's series that you could put on as well, where you're going to, you know, maybe 3 campuses over the course of a month. Um, each
campus would grant you $300, so if it's, um…
Three campuses you're visiting, you will automatically get 900 to support the activities.
of, um, your event.
Other funds, however,
required to run this event will need to be, um, acquired either through local sponsorship,
or in-kind donations. So, one thing we've actually talked about recently is
you know, um, folks want to print out the certificates of participation.
Um, and perhaps instead of going to, you know, your local print shop, maybe the campus that you're running this event on would have a printer that could
you know, print these certificates for you, so that would definitely cut the cost of having to
do that load there. So, um, another idea was…
Could the campus potentially open up the cafeteria for a little bit while you're there so the students could get food? If it's a full day or multiple-day event?
Um, those are things that you can, you know,
ask about when you're in…
talks with the campus you're hoping to host this event on.
But there's other in-kind donations that you can also seek.
Typically, these events are meant to run
pretty lean, so, you know, maybe some pizza, some snacks, um, just to get them, the students fed, but you really want to focus on the learning outcomes that the event is for.
Um, so we do ask that you try to keep the budget up to date and not over-commit with expenses, especially if we haven't had any sponsorships paid.
Um, and then we also recommend, where possible, utilizing, you know, any advantages of the campus, as I gave examples of earlier.
Um, when it comes to…
the… sponsorship aspect.
I just want to share an example here of…
a WordPress Campus Connect site. This is, um, the Ajmer India site.
You'll see here in the top right, they have a call for sponsors.
This is a… this is a very big event, but by the way, so as you see, like, 1,400 students alone, they're working to engage throughout this event, so they did require a bit more funding, and so a lot…
a larger call for sponsors went out,
And this is actually a good example. I'm going to share the link.
in our chat here.
But they've created a sponsorship package that sponsors can apply for, um…
And that has helped them to receive more funding to, you know, put on these activities across the campuses that they were engaging with.
All of this as well.
We have mentors and supporters that can help guide you through this process, so
with… whether it's about the budget, or trying to rally some sponsors, um, don't be discouraged. Like, there's so many people with a lot of experience who would be happy to talk to you about
Um, what tactics to use, or how to get these things set up.
But, once you've got your budget in mind,
Um, you'll want to…
do these five things.
fill out the event data at the top.
um, receive invoices for whatever, um, things you're going to provide. Maybe it's the snacks,
It might just be a receipt, um, but if there's any other services,
And then fill out the expenses and contact sponsors,
In case you need that additional funding.
And… let me show you now from…
the site…
side what that budget…
page looks like.
Jumping back in…
Here. So, I'm going back to my site.
And going to Budget…
This is…
the blank canvas that you'll eventually… you'll essentially get. One thing…
That you'll want to note here is, um,
I said that $300 is guaranteed, so you can put $300 in the community sponsorships.
already there. But then, as you go through, just noting
probably no venue cost. Typically, there isn't, um, since the canvas provides that.
Campus provides that. Um, but anything else, maybe coffee,
times 20 students,
you get a, um, quote for that, and you can put that in here.
once you're done filling out all the expenses you believe you'll have for this event, um, hopefully with some invoices or some estimations,
Um, you can hit submit for approval, and this will trigger a message to our
Um, program supporters to start working on the budget review with you.
Um, and there will be a back and forth here, it's not just a, oh, you submitted a budget, reject.
there will be feedback, and we'll do our best to guide you to, um, getting this approved.
Okay, so I'm going to jump back to the presentation. I think those two items are probably the most
mysterious, because you really have to apply to be able to even see most of this. I wanted to just kind of demystify
those items for you first.
Um, but once you've got that budget settled, you've filled out your information,
Um, we'll work toward getting your event scheduled. And…
When you have your event scheduled, it shows up on this WordCamp.
Central site. I'm going to share this here.
Um, and we understand, though, this is a public site, and we understand that these events are not open to the public, but it just
shows up here, because that's our current process, and it really showcases and celebrates
the fact that your event is happening. So, um, you can see this
top is filled with…
campus connect events, so maybe your next event here will be at the top as well.
Once it's scheduled, your final step really is to just put on an amazing Campus Connect event, which I have no doubt you will be able to do.
Moving along to the sponsor side…
of things, how to apply, what does that look like?
So, also, who… who can sponsor these events? Um, I want to be very clear, any… any individual, business, large or small, can sponsor an event.
Um, whether it's through in-kind donations, maybe you have a local coffee shop, and they're willing to, you know,
donate the coffee to your event for the… for the day. Um, or there might be some individuals who are just passionate and they want to help with a little bit of direct funding, or a business might be, um, open to direct funding.
Anyone can apply to sponsor event and also share, um,
how they would like to be able to sponsor these events.
So, it went into this a little bit, but these are the ways, and this is not an exhaustive list. We're also still learning as these events go on, other ways that…
Um, sponsors are contributing.
But I do want to highlight on this list, you see the scholarships to local or flagship word camps.
Um, this one, I'm highlighting because we were actually able to, um, receive sponsors
Scholarships to send to students,
from Spain, um, from their WordPress Campus Connect event that they had to WordCamp US this year. So, these opportunities, I think, create
lasting memories and opportunities for students to get connected with the wider WordPress community of creators and builders.
Um, so even if it's local or a flagship,
that's a really amazing gift to… to give to, you know,
future, um, runners of…
the software.
Alright, so you're interested in sponsoring these events. What happens next? We have a link.
As well.
for sponsoring.
And I should back up here. We're… where on earth am I getting these links from? Uh, let me clarify. There's this WordPress events site.
Here, events.wordpress.org.
And when you go to this site, there's Organize an event,
And we're specifically looking at the WordPress Campus Connect section. So, that's where I'm pulling these links from.
Um, it has an overview of what Campus Connect is.
And then it has links to, you know, if you want to get involved and organize, that's where that organizer form is from.
or if you want to sponsor, that's where I just grabbed the sponsorship form from.
But once you're there on the desired form,
You'll just fill that out, and similar to the organizer process, it'll go into an inbox where our program supporters can review and engage with the sponsor on how they would like to
they sponsor these events. Some folks would prefer to do local sponsorships, some folks are open to, um, global sponsorships, and so once they've essentially been vetted and we confirmed
what they're, um, hoping to sponsor these events for. Um, once an event is ready and potentially needs additional sponsorship,
We can tap these sponsors to, um, assist with any event that might require additional sponsorship.
So, um…
To summarize, there's basically 3 things that'll happen. We've got the…
community sponsorships that happened, $300, you'll get that right away.
You can raise funds with local sponsors in your area,
Um, maybe there's a tech company in your area you would, um, approach for that.
And you can also…
get, um…
potential help as well from these sponsors who have specifically applied to
help with WordPress Campus Connect events.
I see a hand raised, thank you.
Um, ladies, would you like to…
Say your question, or would you like to type it?
Yeah, yeah, hi. First of all, hi, and thanks, it's going really amazing. Really excited.
Hello.
Bit specific question, what if we are talking about the sponsorship that is focused on a specific event?
Yeah, so specifically looking at my case, so I'm a lecturer at the university,
And this is something really interesting to me. We are already, you know, talking about WordPress credits, the deal is already there, uh…
I'm looking at the campus, you know, that
This is the next thing I want to do. Uh, but I'm also working at WP Bakery, and, you know, like,
This is kinda… okay, I…
If we organize that, I would love to, you know…
get, for example, the sponsorship for that specific event. Do we need to apply through the same form, or how does it go?
Because this form is a bit generic, it kinda covers, like, the whole campus idea.
Yes, I think I'm hearing two things from you. You're… you want to organize an event.
And then you also want to sponsor this event, or get sponsors for this event?
Just to be clear.Yeah, yeah, I have two jobs, so one will help me to organize, the second one will help me to sponsor.
Yeah, so reg…
Okay, and I will try to clarify this as best I can.
if WP Bakery, for example, wants to help sponsor that event,
That is totally fine. Um, if you want to get more sponsors for the event, you can put out a call for sponsors,
Um, you can put out, um,
you… yeah, a call for sponsors at this point. Um, and then if you at WP Bakery would like to sponsor other Campus Connect events that are being put on by other organizers,
Um, that would be this form.Then we need to go to… with that form, yeah?
Yeah.
Ah, oh, okay. So, if we want to sponsor a specific event, we don't need to go through that form, we just say,
hey, here is the money, take it, use it wherever you like. Ah, okay.
Yes!
Yeah.
That was the question. And that's probably interesting for, like, local sponsorships, you know, like…
Yeah.
reduce for them bureaucracy a bit, like…
to use the process, right?Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Um, Miguel, I see you have a question as well regarding the sponsor application form.
I think it's now clear, because the point was for me, the local sponsors, uh, that could be a lot of friction with this formula, especially
if I approach a coffee place, as you said, um, pretend to sponsor the thing, and I…
I see it very difficultly they will create a WordPress user and register, or the same if I go to the local Chamber of Commerce and ask for sponsoring.
Uh, that would be no goal for many sponsors, I think, uh, but…
I understand this is for genetic sponsors who want to contribute worldwide.
This form, no? Okay.
Yes, absolutely.
Okay, all clear. Thank you.
Yeah. Yeah, you're welcome!
Yeah, so we kind of considered this as, like, the last form of, like, defense for making sure that your vent can run. So, you know, if you're… you've gone out and you've got local sponsors, you… you got the 300, but you're like, oh, I'm short, like,
200, or ooh, I just need this one thing, food and bev.
um, beverages. We can, uh, the community team and folks in the Campus Connect channel can kind of just
put a, um, tap out into these sponsors to see if they would be, um, available to fill that gap.
Yes!
You know, while we are on the topic, uh, those 300 easiest ways, probably, let's say that, okay, we do have, uh, the venue is provided by the university, uh, the food is
Probably. Food, drinks, that could be something that, you know,
provided by some company, uh, in terms of… on the basis of invoice. So the idea is that, uh, we kind of submit the invoice, uh, and the foundation just transfers those 300, or I don't know, 220, something like that. That's the process, yeah?
Yes, yes.
Um, yeah, I…
didn't really plan to get into the invoicing, but…
I'll just show you all real quick, because I feel like that's another, like, mysterious area with these sites.
Um, so we're jumping back into my… my little presentation site for my WordPress Campus Connect event.
In the budget section, there is this sponsor invoices.
area, um, where you can create an invoice for a sponsor.
Um, you also have to create a sponsor, so…
there's this section as well.
Um, but that's where you could send the invoices.
Um, that are being handled through the WordPress community support.
um, funding.
Okay, so jumping back in…
here… oh! Boy, well, that was it for the sponsors, but of course, if there's any other questions,
Um, we can get into that, too. I just wanted to share
just about 2 more initiatives that are happening right now in the
Um, education sphere of WordPress right now.
The first being, uh, WordPress credits.
So, WordPress Credits is an initiative where schools partner with the WordPress Foundation to provide campus credits
like, academic credits to their students through their real contributions in the WordPress community. Um, so, for example, with the pilot that launched in Italy, uh, in Pisa,
Um, 6 students have already begun onboarding and integrating with the Make WordPress community, providing translations.
Um, into the WordPress software in our Polyglots team.
Um, so this is a huge opportunity for students to skill up and create professional opportunities for themselves while earning credit for school.
Um, and as you can see, we've, uh, at WordCamp US, we actually announced the partnership with, uh, Firaletas University in San Jose.
They are starting this year, it's optional, but from next year, it's going to be a mandatory requirement for students
to do this in practicum,
within the WordPress community. Um, so as you engage, potentially, with your universities,
It doesn't have to be first with a WordPress Campus Connect event, maybe that becomes an in, but if you already have, you know, a relationship with a university, you can talk about WordPress.
credits, um, and how these students can come in and gain real-life experience, um, with WordPress by working
with the community and making contributions to the software.
So that QR code that I've shown there is…
a, um…
a link to the application for any campuses that would like to apply for this program.
So if you know anyone, please send it their way, and I see Miguel, you've also raised your hand around this. Happy to…
answer your question?
Yes, thank you. I would like to ask if the WordPress credits is, like, an extension, or more…
deep immersion in WordPress, uh, what is the… regarding the Campus Connect?
If the credits are, like, ex…
the same format, but in an extended way, or it is a totally different
format and way of organizing this.
It is totally different. So, what happens with…
Um, WordPress credits is the…
Insta… educational institution is contracted directly with the WordPress Foundation, um, and maybe their computer science department, for example, um,
you know, has a course that they're teaching, they make it a requirement, then, of
this course, either optional or mandatory. We're trying to get them to do mandatory, but, um, optional side.
they… the students must put in 120 hours in
of work in the WordPress community, for example, in order to gain a certain amount of credits.
So this is definitely different in that it's not just a one-day or a couple days event, it is, you know, going throughout their semester, they are engaging with other community members,
in their teams, providing real contributions to WordPress.
Yeah.
Okay.
So, the other item I wanted to share with you today is just about WordPress student clubs.
So, again, this is, like, in addition to…
um, campus-connect events, and also
the, um, credits program, but essentially, what can happen is
on any campus, folks can start a
a WordPress student club, which is like an extracurricular club, like, I don't know if you, you know, there might be a soccer club, or a, um,
Animation Club or something like this, that's cool.
their interest or hobby would be WordPress in this case, and essentially they can create this
club, they'll receive a site, and it's co- it's co-run by students and a faculty member,
Um, and it becomes a hub for them to continue WordPress activities and learning, so…
I guess, like, connecting it back to WordPress Campus Connect, they could, um,
then throw on, you know, WordPress Campus Connect events. They could invite local community members to give talks to their club, um, they could, you know, run their own hackathon.
Um, any activity is acceptable, or, you know, if that same school is also
engaged in the WordPress credits program, that student club now becomes a hub where maybe these
Students can now, um, you know, spend an hour together doing some contributions.
So, it's a way for folks to create, like, a meetup, in a way, on campus, um, just specifically for the students.
Okay? If you would like to request a club, I am…
Showing that here, and I do want to note…
that this…
We received an inquiry, um, a couple weeks ago from a public library,
So, once again, like, our, you know, vision of what a educational institution or campus is, is always a
adapting and changing to meet learners where they are. So, you know, maybe you also have a
maybe a non-traditional space that, um, it still aggregates
learners that you would like to start a student club for, um, feel free to still send in the application and
you know, we can start that discussion and try to make that happen for you.
Okay.
Well, I was talking quite a lot, but that was the…
extent of my presentation today, I wanted to save the rest of the time for any other questions we might have.
I see one…
in the chat real quick that I'll pick up, because it was a moment ago, but I see some hands, too, so I'll come back for the hands.
Um, in terms of the question I see here,
It's… we want to offer sponsorship to all of the Campus Connect events to provide free hosting account and domain name,
For all students and teachers to participate,
How do we make this available to all Campus Connect and credit programs?
Yeah, oh, Isota, she's…
Uh, she's actually the manager, the steward of the campus cred… uh, the WordPress credits.
Um, program here, so…
She's noting an answer here, so I'll just read that aloud for folks. Um…
they've already approved this sponsorship application for James,
The offer is now available to all enrolled students and displayed along the products sponsored by other companies.
Students can review the offer details, and if they choose your offer, we will follow the process provided by your team to give them the coupon or link they need.
So, WordPress Campus Connect would follow the same principle. Um, anyone is…
free to share their, you know, services, discounts, whatever, for students. Um, but it's going to be shared
in a space where, you know, everyone else who has opted to do this
can, and then the students can choose themselves which offer they would like to, um,
accept.
Okay, I think I saw Nassim's hand.
go up first, so…
the scene.
What is your question?
Hi, Destiny already, uh…
almost EU-complator, all the things of what was cushioned in my mind.
Mm-hmm.I have a little bit question about the, uh,
applying Campus Connect. The thing is, before applying Campus Connect, do we need to contact the local WordPress community to add them as a co-organizer, or by only a student can apply?
Uh, for the WordPress Campus Connect by themselves.
Yeah, so that's a good question.
You do not need to contact the local WordPress community, um, before you
apply to put on this event. Um, I was saying earlier that students could put on the event if, you know, for their campus, teachers, faculty could also apply. We're trying to reduce that barrier because
These aren't WordCamps. Um, they are a different type of event.
However, we do…
love when, you know, folks can engage with the local community, just to get support from them in that, you know, um, I was saying earlier,
I might have this… I might be a teacher at a school, I already have the venue, I just need, potentially, a few subject matter experts, or, you know,
people who can talk about WordPress. Um, I think, naturally,
the place to go would be that local community, because folks are aggregated there, a bunch of professionals, that might be the first, you know, pool of people to tap for, um, volunteers or co-organizers to help.
make it a successful event. But that doesn't mean it has to go that way. So, we always encourage a mutual relationship, because that just makes it more sustainable and
could help these events become more impactful.
But, um, if you already have the organizers, you already know what you're doing, um, that is completely fine to… to go.
Ah, the related question, can I ask one more?
Oh, sure.
Okay, thank you. Let's say, uh, if I'm an international student,
So, can internationally student studying in the university, but they are not the citizen of the host country where is the application.
For Campus Connect. They also can apply for organizing.
If they're a student of the campus, regardless of nationality, um, or status, I would say yes.
Um, in my… so I was an international student, at least in my case, usually you have a visa, so you're considered a resident of the place you are at while you're there in school.
Um, so… I mean, not to get, like, super political or bureaucratic, but, um, I would say yes to that, that person.
Thank you, thank you. I got my question and answer.
Mm-hmm.
Okay, I believe next was Miguel.
Yes, thank you. Uh, I wanted also to ask if you could provide us some kind of example of, uh, in terms of
How, like, does the program look like? The hours dedicated for what, and even in the preparation phase, and if you… if we could also see some example of a budget to get a better idea of some
really simple.
Yeah, that is… that is a really good question. Um…
Let me…
I don't have an example budget I can, like, pull up now,
But is it okay if I follow up?
after, with some information around that, like screenshots and…
Yes, sure, sure, because I understand it has to be anonymized for reasons, but yeah.
Yes.
Okay, so note to self, um, get you some information on what
the organization process could look like a little bit more in-depth, and then, um, an example budget.
Mm-hmm, that would be great, yeah, exactly. And if you would recommend us to check one of the current or previous Camput Connect,
Okay.
to get an idea, check in the program, which one would you mention?
Mm-hmm. Yeah, I mean, we have several going on right now, so, um, I even just shared
This one is, um, from Ajmir, it's current. This is an example of a series.
Um, I've sent the link in the chat.
Um, we also had, um…
Rivera in Spain…
Which went over a couple days, and they had a gala.
Um, as well, so you can look at their schedule.
Um, and then I believe the…
I haven't directly.
Ooh, I do not.
So we had a community report here.
You know what, I will link to this too. We do an education buzz post, and I just posted the most recent one.
Um, here, but it'll talk about the events that are going on,
And the other one I wanted to point out was this one we had in the Philippines as well. It was a one-day event.
So, um, there's a couple examples there.
Uh, Monday, over the span of a month via a series, or, um, just, uh,
a couple days.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
Okay, uh, I believe, Raitis, you're next?
Of course, I have another question. So, yeah, it's a bit different, you know, from WordCamp, so maybe from your experience.
Ew, spite.
Uh, what would be, like, you know,
the time required to organize everything, like, go…
Yeah.how long before the actual event, you know, we should apply, and so on.
Yeah… that's a good question. So, we've received a lot of enthusiastic applications, um, but on a very short timeline recently, so…
Honestly, some requesting within 2 weeks, or 3 weeks, um, and it really hasn't been enough time in terms of the application processing.
Even the application processing side, it's volunteer-run, too, right? So, there is a bit of, um, time that folks need
to take to, you know, thoroughly review, um, go with you over the budget and things like this.
Um, so, uh, it's very recently that we've…
decided to, um,
update the recommendation here to at least 6 weeks before your planned event.
Um, you can apply.
This is not a hard requirement. I'm saying asterisk because there are experienced organizers out there, too, who might need
only a couple weeks to do it, um, but that's not everyone. So, in general, for, um, being able to vet your application and give you the best amount of success,
at least 6 weeks is what we're recommending at the moment.
Lead time.
you need to have that, you know, peace of mind. Uh, thank you.
Yeah. You're very welcome.
Um, so I saw some questions in the chat that I wanted to make sure were addressed as well.
Um, so we had… do we need to follow a strict program, or can we adapt the program to the students, university, and lecturers?
Uh, you can adapt it to the needs of the folks on the campus, exactly, O'Neill, so…
Um, I was sharing earlier that maybe a typical first-time format might be a one-day, you start with the foundations of WordPress, you, um, have a lunch break, and then you start building sites and showcase what students have built.
If you're like, no, I want to start off, because this is a campus full of technical students who already know WordPress, or developers, like,
you can totally start off with a developer-driven event, um, talk about SEO, you know, custom plugins, whatever you'd like. Definitely feel free to adapt it to the needs of
these students themselves.
And we have another question from…
Okwanga. What happens if I schedule Campus Connect within the same campus, but on multiple days, and invite students from other campuses?
Does the $300 support apply per event date or not?
This $300 support applies per campus, so regardless of the date.
Uh, will the video of the call be available? Yes, I… this call is being recorded, and I will…
ship that all to you tomorrow.
I'll have to go to bed after this, but…
Um, that will be available to everyone tomorrow.
And we've got still some time, folks. Are there any other questions that…
maybe came to mind?
Let me make sure I didn't miss anything else in the chat while I'm waiting.
So, we've got a question. If the application is rejected because
They are not part of the local community, what can I do next?
Yeah, that should not have been a requirement if that was the case. So, what you can do next is, um, I would engage with the program supporters,
Um, or maybe the program managers to just kind of, you know, ask for clarity on that.
Um, and if you weren't given clarity, they should be able to help find that for you.
Oh, maybe, yeah, so I have a question saying, uh…
But there was something mentioned that, uh, yeah, it's a closed event, so it may be more focused on specific university,
But, uh, is it okay, you know, to promote it within the… not the region, yeah, but within the city?
students from other universities can come to the event. I think that's…
I think that's completely fine.
I… so the…
way that that's arranged, I think, is totally up to the organizer. If…
You know, it's being… it's usually on a campus itself, so, um,
however you want to organize it, you would still need, like, permission from that campus to maybe invite other students over.
I personally don't see why not. You, you know, you can't…
um, create a larger-scale event, um, targeting, like, 3…
Um, campuses, for example, but assembling all of those students on one of them.
Um, I… I mean, why not? If you have the space to do that?
Um, and it really just depends, like, uh, sometimes I think folks go one event per campus to just really
build that singular relationship first, before kind of opening it up to a bunch, but…
I'm not saying it has to be that way.
Okay, we have another question.
$300 will be provided before the event, or after the event.
And how many minimum, maximum number of students is required for this event?
There is no minimum, maximum number of students required for the event. Um, it would be nice if you have more than one student, though, that's in attendance.
Um, and then it… the $300 will be provided
depending on, like, your expense. So you'll invoice for that, um, to pay… maybe you… you had, um,
pizza that equaled $200 that you've ordered for this event. So, you would invoice, you know, for the $200 versus trying to get the $300, and then…
dispersing it from there.
Um, okay, we have another question. Do WordPress student clubs need to be applied for and started by students only, or can a local community member also apply to start one?
So that is a great question, and no, they do not. So…
What does, or should happen, though, is
the creation of this
a student club needs to be
in, um…
in agreement with whatever campus
It is, um, being created on. So, you know, for example, a local community member can't just be like,
I haven't engaged with X university, but I'm gonna start a student club there. That application will be rejected. There needs to be a faculty member from that
Um, campus, um, that is going to be not facilitator, but, you know, the connection for the students.
Um, but a local community member could, like, on behalf of them,
Um, request it.
But there will be a vetting process to ensure that that relationship exists.
Um, and then if the student leaders graduate, who will continue to lead the club? Will new students take over, or can a faculty advisor, local community member step in?
So that's why it's important to have the faculty member also involved, because they would probably, like, help with onboarding any new students, or the previous leads.
We asked for about 2 co-leads, um…
to help with redundancy, and then,
succession planning, I guess, as well. So, um, that's how we would see it go, you know, the…
Two co-leads might onboard new leaders as they
Graduate out, and the faculty member that is in charge of the
club can help facilitate that process.
Okay, well, these were all great questions. I do want to be respectful of
everyone's time, but, um, I don't just, like, disappear in a puff of smoke after this event. Feel free to reach out to me, whether it's on the WordPress Make Slack,
Or I'll be sending out, um… I'll also be sending out an email here with the link to the recorded videos, so… and ways to contact me as well.
Um, but yeah, we're… I'm not only here for you, there's a bunch of people that are here for you, so come join us.
Um, we're excited to see what events you're gonna put on for the students.
Well, thank you, everyone!
Enjoy the rest of your days.