[Events] Python user group outreach report, 2014-02-05 (fwd)

[Asheesh Laroia]

The usual weekly report, enclosed!

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 6 Feb 2014 04:13:16
From: Asheesh Laroia <asheesh at asheesh.org>
Subject: Python user group outreach report, 2014-02-05

This past week, I:

* Got in touch with Lynn to sync up about PyLadies SF and a Django event.

* Chatted with PyLadies Barcelona and Python Barcelona separately; it seems 
both are interested in adding newcomer-friendly lightning talks to the Python 
Barcelona event, perhaps with women as some of the lightning talkers.

* Worked with Tobi of PyLadies NYC to move their Linux for newcomers event 
forward. (Despite my known affection for GNU/Linux operating systems, this 
event was not my idea!)

* Talked with Michelle Rowley of PDX Python, resulting in a few ideas for the 
future (make a web page that explains what it's like to speak at a Python user 
group, so that it's easier to hand this one-pager to women who are possibly 
interested in speaking, and Tweet links to it, etc.) (rename Project Night into 
Project & Study Night) and one idea that might take fruition by the end of 
February (lightning talks for newcomers at PDX Python, hopefully with women 
speakers).

* Met with Mako to discuss on his plans about a Seattle-area introductory 
Python for Data multi-week event, which are likely to occur in February.

* Met with Jennifer of PyLadies Boston to help move their Django intro event 
forward. Plausible ETA is April for that, it seems.

* Possibly working with HackBright Academy in SF to work on a Django intro-y 
event? Much is still up in the air. Will be syncing that up with Sandy & Lynn.

* Noticed that Sheila Miguez picked up the ball where I left it (in the Chicago 
community's court) for a Project Night. Theirs is scheduled to be on Feb 27.

* Wrote a brief nearly-post-grant-period report, which I've just sent to 
outreach-and-education at python.org, as well as events at lists.openhatch.org.


Obstacles:

* More time would lead to more results, in principle. (I say "in principle" 
because I'm still feeling comfortable and joyful doing this outreach, but am 
close to the max capacity I have for that on a weekly basis.) If others want to 
volunteer to help, I would be happy to figure out how to best plug in!

* I have run out of large-ish user groups to contact via Meetup, but luckily at 
this point I have enough leads on groups that want to run newcomer-welcoming 
events that I'm OK with that.


This coming week:

* I'll be transitioning to focusing on the individual speaker outreach, and 
moving the existing "maybe"s forward, in terms of newcomer-friendly events.

* I'm behind on talking to PyCon speakers about speaking with their local 
group; I aim to get that ball rolling in the next couple of days.


A general remark:

* "Sales" (convincing people to do things) is an interesting challenge, and to 
help me with that, I bought a couple of books that I'll be reading.

-- Asheesh.