History

Sara's letters to students

Initial Attendee E-mail for anyone who didn’t give an e-mail address

Hello Insert Name!

Firstly, I would like to thank you all so much for signing up to come to this workshop! I, for one, am really looking forward to it.

I have a form I am sending all our attendees so we can group everyone as accurately as possible.

As Meetup.com doesn't give us direct access to your e-mail addresses, could you all please just reply with an e-mail containing your full name and e-mail address by the end of the day on Insert Date. (This information will ONLY be used for the purposes of these workshops.)

In return, I'll be able to send you a google form so you can give us more details about your experience level and help us place you in groups with people of a similar level!

Thanks again for helping us get this rolling! Sara Richards

Attendee e-mail for those with +1’s

Hi Insert Name,

I just wanted to check in with you regarding your +1. If they are still planning on attending, can I please get their name and e-mail address so we can send them a grouping form, as well as the installation instructions that they'll need, before Friday?

Thanks a million! Sara

Pre-Workshop Attendee E-mail (2-3 days before workshop)

Hi you wonderful attendees!

For those that are on the "Yes" list, please make sure to try installing as much as you can before coming to Friday's installfest. For those with a Mac, please make every effort to at least get xcode downloaded, if not fully installed.

If you're signed up to attend but haven't already filled out the 'grouping' form, please contact me directly so I can get that sent out to you ASAP.

For those of you on the wait list, if meetup.com hasn't alerted you by Friday at 4pm that you've been moved to the 'Yes' list, then we weren't able to accommodate you in this workshop- sorry! We do have workshops regularly though, so make sure to watch Meetup.com for announcements.

INSTALL: Install instructions for everything you'll need for the weekend can be found here: http://www.wiki.devchix.com/index.php?title=Workshop_Installation_Notes_Rails_3

Follow the instructions for whatever operating system you're running. You may have to install newer versions of applications you already have, but please make sure your versions are up to date.

WHAT TO BRING: Yourself, your laptop, and your power supply. Also some ID and money if you'd like to attend the afterparty. Insert Venue is providing Pizza on Friday and Lunch on Saturday, as well as snacks and drinks, and we'll make sure to have some coffee and bagels there for you Saturday Morning.

PARKING: Bike Parking: (Insert Bike Parking Options Here)

Car Parking: There are two reasonable nearby options for parking: (Insert Parking Options Here)

SCHEDULE: Here's a loose schedule for the day:
  • 9:00am - Volunteers arrive
  • 9:30- 10:00 am Participants arrive, Coffee & Networking
  • 10:00 - 10:30 Opening presentation
  • 10:30 - 10:40 Class assignment
  • 10:40 - 11:30 Session 1
  • 11:40 - 12:30 Session 2
  • 12:30 - 1:30 Lunch
  • 1:40 - 2:30 Session 3
  • 2:40 - 3:30 Session 4
  • 3:50 - 4:20 Closing Presentation
  • 4:20 - 4:30 Teacher/TA debrief and Cleanup
  • 4:30 - ??? Afterparty at Insert Venue Name

CURRICULUM: If you're curious about what you'll be learning, feel free to take a look at the curriculum before Saturday. You can find the curriculum here: http://www.wiki.devchix.com/index.php?title=Rails_3_Curriculum

CHILDCARE: So far no one attending has said they need childcare. We will need to make advance arrangements if someone does need childcare, so if you responded that you didn't need it but now do, please let me know ASAP. Directions to Insert Afterparty Location: Turn Left outside of Pivotal Labs, and walk down Market Street. Turn Left onto 5th street, and right onto Stevenson Street. Thermidor will be on your right.

Looking forward to seeing you all this weekend! Sara

After-Workshop Follow-Up

Hello Rubyists!

Thank you to everyone who attended the Installfest and Workshop this weekend. I hope it was a worthwhile learning experience for each of you.

I know some people came hoping to get an overview of programming and Ruby on Rails so that they can work better with engineering coworkers, run or start their own companies more efficiently, or sounds smarter at tech happy hours. If this was you, I hope you walked away with a better understanding of what goes on behind the scenes of websites and engineering groups. Many of you may have come because you're interested in becoming a programmer, so I hope you left inspired and informed, not discouraged! Below is a link to the Next Steps & Resources page that we discussed during the Workshop wrap-up. I encourage all of you to check out the different resources, show up at future Meetup events, join Women Who Code, look for a mentor, and ask a lot of questions!

Please feel free to email me with those questions or if you have feedback on the workshop. You may receive a separate follow-up survey on your workshop experience, so please fill that out. We take feedback seriously and it's helped us improve and evolve the workshops since they were started.

Resources: http://www.wiki.devchix.com/index.php?title=Workshop_Resources_and_Next_Steps

Mentorship Sign up:

Thanks again!