Sprint hosting How-to

If you're hosting or would like to host a Django sprint, here's how that works

0. Volunteer to host

From time to time, one of the core committers (probably Jacob) will post a call for sprint locations on ​django-dev. Contact that person if you think you can host.

1. Get a location

To host a sprint, you'll need a good location. A good location needs:

• A coordinator who can take RSVPs, give directions, help

out-of-towners find hotels and dinner, etc. Someone from the Django team will be available to help out and answer questions, but a local liason is a must.

• Room for at least 20 or 30 geeks. You should ask people to RSVP and can cap attendance if needed, but you should expect a minimum of 20 folks to show up, and possibly more (we had over 50 at PyCon 2008, but that's a corner case!).

• Chairs and tables, of course.

• Big enough tubes such that those 30 geeks can all watch YouTube work at the same time. You probably need both wired and wireless.

However, you *don't* need:

• Much money; the Django Software Foundation can help with costs. Ideally you should find a sponsor (see below), but you don't have to have one.

• A committer -- the DSF will make sure that at least one committer attends each official sprint.

Sponsorship

It's a good idea to try to find a local sponsor who will donate/pay for space, and perhaps even buy lunch/beer. Your sponsor should feel free to spend as much or as little as they feel comfortable with. To get an idea of costs, a sprint at a corporate office (i.e. free space) and cheap lunch (pizza or the like) for 30 will cost somewhere in the $500 range.

If your sprint is being sponsored, please feel free to add a big "sponsored by" section and link to the sprint page! We love sponsorships!

Also, note that the Django Software Foundation is a bona fide 501(c)(3) non-profit, which means that the money the sponsor spends on the sprint can be considered a donation to the DSF, and will be tax-deductible. Keep track of expenses and the DSF will write a receipt for donations.

Sponsoring a sprint may also qualify the sponsor for corporate membership in the DSF; contact the Foundation for details.

2. Announce the sprint

• Create a wiki page for your sprint (see SprintTemplate for a template you can copy). Make sure to add details about the location, how people should RSVP, and getting to/from info for out-of-towners.

• Make sure you have your contact information on that page for anyone who has questions!

• Add your sprint to the list on the Sprints page.

• Announce the sprint on ​django-dev. Your contact at the Django team will cross-post your announcement to the Django weblog.

3. Prepare yourself

As the sprint date draws near, you'll need to deal with RSVPs, answer questions from people looking to attend, and generally be available to help people get to the sprint location.

Don't be shy about capping attendance if your chosen space fills up.

You should try to arrange to set up the sprint space the night before the sprint. At the very least, plan to spend at least an hour setting up before anyone shows up. Make sure the Internets work, check that there's enough power strips, etc. If finding the space is non-obvious, post some signs.

4. At the sprint

Once the sprint starts, relax! You're basically done at this point; from here on out your role will be to help out-of-towners find lunch, dinner, etc.

5. After

As the sprint winds down, make sure to get some volunteers to help clean up. Anybody who shows should be willing to help out, so make sure we don't leave the place a mess.

It's traditional to go drinking afterwards; maybe have a bar in mind?