This is the home of the Make Community team for the WordPress open sourceOpen SourceOpen Source denotes software for which the original source code is made freely available and may be redistributed and modified. Open Source **must be** delivered via a licensing model, see GPL. project!
Here is where we have policy debates, project announcements, and assist community members in organizing events.
Everyone is welcome to comment on posts and participate in the discussions regardless of skill level or experience.
Get Involved
If you love WordPress and want to help us do these things, join in!
Mary just published the 2026 Big Picture Goals for the project, and we wanted to share what this means specifically for our Community Team work this year. Education-related goals will be discussed in their own context, so this post focuses on the major priority that affects us directly: revamping meetupsMeetupMeetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our Meetup Organizer Handbook..
Why meetups matter more than ever
Meetups are explicitly called out as the primary front door to the WordPress community. With WordPress Credits and Campus Connect scaling quickly, we’re going to see more new people looking to get involved. Meetups need to be ready to welcome them and, critically, turn that curiosity into active participation.
As the post highlights:
“Meetups are where people build confidence, relationships, and momentum. When they work well, they turn curiosity into commitment.”
Building on what works
Many meetups are already doing great work bringing people together. In 2026, we want to expand and strengthen what’s working by adding more opportunities for active participation alongside the presentations and social gatherings that meetups already do well. This means:
Adding issue-focused sessions where attendees work together on real WordPress problems
Expanding hands-on learning opportunities tied to actual WordPress needs (complementing presentations with practice)
Providing clear next steps that move people from meetupMeetupMeetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our Meetup Organizer Handbook. participation into contribution on Make teams
Exploring new topics together: As AI tools become more common, meetups are natural spaces where people can learn together how these tools fit into WordPress workflows
What we need to do
This evolution requires support from us as a team. Here’s what we think our priorities should be for Q1 and beyond:
Immediate actions (Q1-Q2 2026)
Review and strengthen current meetup resources
Audit the Meetup Organizer Handbook to ensure it supports this broader approach
Identify what additional guidance organizers need for running hands-on, issue-focused sessions
Connect with our meetup organizer community
Review all existing meetup groups to understand current activity levels
Reach out to organizers to share these goals, learn about their challenges, and offer support
Contact groups that haven’t met recently to explore options: finding new co-organizers, revitalizing the group, or respectfully closing inactive chapters
Create practical resources for organizers
Templates for hands-on session formats and issue-focused meetups
Suggested workflows for connecting meetup attendees to Make teams
Sample “next steps” pathways for different skill levels
Guidance on facilitating learning sessions about emerging topics like AI tools in WordPress
Highlight and share what’s working
Identify meetups already running successful hands-on or contribution-focused sessions
Create ways to showcase these examples to inspire other organizers and mentorsEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues.
Develop a system for celebrating and amplifying innovative meetup formats
Mid-term work (Q2-Q3 2026)
Enhance organizer training and onboarding
Update orientation materials to include guidance on active participation formats
Include resources on mentoring new contributors who attend meetups
Strengthen the meetup-to-contribution pipeline
Work with Make team reps to ensure they have clear onboarding for meetup attendees
Create better visibility of “good first issues” that meetup groups can tackle together
Improve coordination with Education programs
Establish clear pathways for WordPress Credits and Campus Connect participants to find local meetups
Provide organizers with context on what these program participants will need
Success metrics
We should be tracking:
Number of meetups incorporating hands-on/contribution-focused sessions
Growth in meetup activity and attendance
Organizer feedback on new resources and guidance
Success stories we can share with the broader community (meetup attendees who became contributors, innovative session formats, community impact examples)
How you can help
This is a team effort. We’d love to hear from you:
Organizers: What would help you add more hands-on, contribution-focused elements to your meetups? What’s working well right now that we should amplify?
Program and event supporters: How can we better support organizers as they expand their meetup offerings?
Everyone: What examples have you seen of meetups that successfully move people into contribution? Which groups should we be highlighting?
Drop your thoughts in the comments or pingPingThe act of sending a very small amount of data to an end point. Ping is used in computer science to illicit a response from a target server to test it’s connection. Ping is also a term used by Slack users to @ someone or send them a direct message (DM). Users might say something along the lines of “Ping me when the meeting starts.” us on SlackSlackSlack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/ (#community-team). If you are able and willing to help with specific tasks (updating handbook content, creating templates, coordinating with Make teams, or reaching out to organizers) let us know.
Next steps
We’ll be scheduling a team discussion in the next couple of weeks to break down these priorities and assign ownership. In the meantime, if you’re organizing or mentoring meetups, start thinking about what one hands-on session could look like in your community, or share an example of something great that’s already happening.
2026 is about momentum. Meetups are where that momentum begins. Let’s make sure we’re ready to support, celebrate, and grow together.
Welcome to the Monthly Education Buzz Report, your go-to source for highlights and updates on the WordPress Campus connect, WordPress Credits, and WordPress Student club education initiatives within the WordPress community. This report aims to celebrate, promote, and inform individuals across the WordPress community and beyond about the diverse educational endeavors underway.
17 more events are currently in the planning stages! We are actively working to expand our global reach and bring more educational opportunities to students worldwide. Come find us in the #campusconnect Slack channel.
Event Highlights
WordPress Campus Connect continues to grow globally, with multiple successful events, new resources, and increased community engagement this month.
WordPress Campus Connect Cumilla Housing Estate School & College (Comilla, Bangladesh)
Organizers hosted WordPress Campus Connect – Cumilla, welcoming 60+ students to explore WordPress and open sourceOpen SourceOpen Source denotes software for which the original source code is made freely available and may be redistributed and modified. Open Source **must be** delivered via a licensing model, see GPL..
The session covered:
An introduction to WordPress and open source collaboration
A hands-on “Build Your First Website” workshop
Contribution pathways and career opportunities in the WordPress ecosystem
A closing ceremony with certificates and recognition for top participants
Organizers reported that students were highly engaged throughout the event, showing strong interest in continuing their learning journey.
Campus Connect – Rajshahi University of Engineering & Technology (RUET)
On 11 December 2025, organizers successfully organized WordPress Campus Connect – Rajshahi (RUET), with 95+ students participating.
The event focused on:
Open source contribution pathways
The evolution of WordPress and the role of GPLGPLGPL is an acronym for GNU Public License. It is the standard license WordPress uses for Open Source licensing https://wordpress.org/about/license/. The GPL is a ‘copyleft’ license https://www.gnu.org/licenses/copyleft.en.html. This means that derivative work can only be distributed under the same license terms. This is in distinction to permissive free software licenses, of which the BSD license and the MIT License are widely used examples.
Hands-on WordPress website building
WordPress in the age of AI
Ways for students to stay connected with the WordPress community
Organizers reported that the atmosphere was energetic and collaborative, with students actively engaging throughout the sessions.
Interactive WordPress sessions and hands-on workshops
Building websites without coding
Learning about career opportunities in web development, UIUIUI is an acronym for User Interface - the layout of the page the user interacts with. Think ‘how are they doing that’ and less about what they are doing./UXUXUX is an acronym for User Experience - the way the user uses the UI. Think ‘what they are doing’ and less about how they do it., QA, digital marketing, and open-source contributions
Community engagement, networking with mentorsEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues., and practical guidance for contributing to the global WordPress community
Campus Connect Kaliro (Uganda, 2025)
Successfully conducted with 110 students, facilitated by @Stephen Dumba, @Ssebuwufu Moses, and @Mukalele Rogers.
Activities included:
Interactive WordPress sessions and hands-on workshops
Knowledge sharing and practical guidance for building websites and exploring open-source contributions
Community engagement, peer collaboration, and mentorship
Despite network challenges, the event was full of energy and excitement, with organizers stating that students expressed joy and enthusiasm, and many shared positive recommendations for future sessions.
This month marked several exciting milestones for the WordPress Credits program, reflecting continued growth in mentorship, partnerships, and student participation.
We successfully hosted our first WordPress Credits MentorEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues. Huddles, creating a new space for mentors to connect, share experiences, and strengthen support for students contributing to WordPress. You can read more about the initiative in the recap post: https://make.wordpress.org/community/2025/12/12/wordpress-credits-mentor-huddles-dec25/
The program was also spotlighted globally, with Universidad Fidélitas from San José, Costa Rica featured as a Spotlight of the Week (SOTW) 2025: https://wordpress.org/news/2025/12/sotw-2025/
Mentor capacity continues to scale. The program now has 50 active mentors, including 22 newly onboarded in the past month, significantly expanding our ability to guide and support students throughout their contribution journey.
Educational partnerships are expanding as well. Cracow University of Technology joined the program, bringing us to 7 partner institutions across 3 regions.
Student engagement remains strong, with 99 students actively contributing through the WordPress Credits course:
We’ve seen an uptick in requests for recorded video messages from Matt to play at WordCamps and community events. To make this easier and more consistent, we’ve created a simple request process.
Organizers can now apply for a short recorded video from Matt. These are intended as a community shoutout and may include brief comments or Q&A, depending on availability.
How it works:
Events must be on the official WordCampWordCampWordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. Learn more. schedule and at least 8 weeks out
Requests must come from WordCamp organizers
We cannot accommodate every request, so priority will be given to milestone events such as first-time WordCamps, anniversaries, or significant community moments
Going forward, this option will also be included in event organizer emails so the process is clear and consistent.
If you have a scheduled event and want to apply, you can do that here:
The Community Team chat takes place the first Thursday of every month in the #community-team channel on SlackSlackSlack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/.
This meeting is meant for all contributors on the team and everyone who is interested in taking part in some of the things our team does. Feel free to join us, even if you are not currently active in the team!
You will find a preliminary agenda for the meeting below.
If you wish to add points to discuss, comment on this post or reach out to one of the team reps: @adityakane, @thehopemonger, @st810amaze, @webtechpooja. It does not need to be a blog post yet, the topic can be discussed during the meeting nevertheless. We use the same agenda for both meetings.
Call for meeting host If anyone is available to host the second sessions of the Community Team monthly meeting at 9pm UTC, please reach out to one of the team reps, who are all based in APAC and EMEA countries: @adityakane, @thehopemonger, @st810amaze, @webtechpooja.
Check-ins: Program and Event Supporters / Contributors
What have you been doing and how is it going?
What did you accomplish after the last meeting?
Are there any blockers?
Can other team members help you in some way?
Highlights to Note
Here are a few things everyone should be aware of.
This is your chance to discuss things that weren’t on the meeting agenda.
We invite you to use this opportunity to share anything that you want with the team. If you currently have a topic you’d like to discuss, add it to the comments of this post, and we will try to update the agenda accordingly.
Hope to see you on Thursday, either in the Asia-Pacific / EMEA (12:00 UTC) or Americas-friendly version (21:00 UTC) of the meeting!
Last year, the WordPress Community came together to celebrate International Women’s Day with women-centric WordPress events across the globe. It was our first-ever initiative of this kind, and the response was incredible. Communities hosted inspiring events that empowered women, amplified voices, and strengthened local ecosystems.
We’re excited to announce that we’re bringing it back this year! The Community Team invites local WordPress communities to once again organize women-focused WordPress events around International Women’s Day and to continue building inclusive, supportive spaces for women and gender minorities in tech.
Planning to host an event? We’ve documented the entire process, guidelines, and best practices in a dedicated handbook to help organizers get started with confidence, covering the application process, budgeting, and event formats.
WordPress Campus Connect is growing, and we need community support to advance key initiatives. We are seeking assistance in the specific areas detailed below. If you are interested in contributing, please comment on this post or reach out to the team in the #campusconnectSlackSlackSlack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/ channel.
Campus Connect MentorEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues.
Campus Connect Participant
Documentation
We require assistance with reviewing and creating content:
Education Handbook: Review for clarity of instruction and identify opportunities for improvement.
Community Handbook Program ManagerProgram ManagerProgram Managers (formerly Super Deputies) are Program Supporters who can perform extra tasks on WordCamp.org like creating new sites and publishing WordCamps to the schedule. Pages: Review for clarity of instruction and identify opportunities for improvement.
Draft WPCC Office HoursOffice HoursDefined times when the Global Community Team are in the #community-events Slack channel. If there is anything you would like to discuss – you do not need to inform them in advance.You are very welcome to drop into any of the Community Team Slack channels at any time. e-guide
Resources Page: Draft a new page in the Education Handbook that includes direct links to essential resources for organizers (e.g., pitch decks, logos).
WP Credits MentorEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues. huddles will take place on SlackSlackSlack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/ in the private mentor channel, with the following sessions: – last Wednesday of each month at 9am UTC, starting on January 28 – last Thursday of each month at 5pm UTC, starting on January 29
This week we hosted the first two WordPress Credits mentor huddles, and it was great to see mentorsEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues. joining from different regions to share experiences, challenges, and ideas. Thank you to everyone who made time to participate and help shape the program together!
We discussed the onboarding phase as one of the most critical moments for students to build confidence and start forming connections within the WordPress community. Many students feel overwhelmed by early setup tasks, such as creating accounts and configuring tools, which can slow engagement. This is why is fundamental that mentors have a clear understanding of the full student platform and the entire student journey, in addition to regularly review student reports to stay informed on progress, spot blockers early, and provide timely support.
Communication and engagement
Communication seems to be a recurring challenge, with students often hesitant to ask questions and share progress in an async environment. As a concrete improvement, we agreed to add mandatory steps that prompt students to introduce themselves and regularly post updates in Slack, including in their contribution team channels. Hopefully, this will help normalize communication, increase visibility, and strengthen students’ sense of belonging.
Language and learning resources
We acknowledged language as a significant barrier, particularly for Spanish speaking students navigating primarily English WordPress resources. To reduce friction, mentors agreed to expand multilingual support where possible and to enhance the mentor guide with resources that help assess students’ knowledge levels and tailor guidance across contribution teams.
Mentorship structure
While we explored the idea of assigning an additional technical or specialized mentor after students choose a contribution team, we confirmed that each student will continue to have one primary mentor assigned before the program starts, supporting them throughout the entire experience. When students choose a contribution area outside their mentor’s direct expertise, mentors will introduce them in the relevant team channels and help connect them with experienced contributors, while remaining responsible for weekly syncs and ongoing check-ins.
Improvements to the mentor course
On the training side, @lidarroy and @evarlese are expanding the mentor course to better support teachers and professionals who may not yet have contribution experience. Our goal is to help them confidently navigate WordPress community spaces and grow into well-prepared mentors.
Retention and community integration
We agreed that retaining graduates in the WordPress community beyond the program is a coreCoreCore is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. goal. We began exploring strategies such as inviting program graduates to mentor new students and creating “day in the life” videos that showcase different contribution roles. Tailored actions aimed at retaining graduates will be defined in January and implemented into the program.
Upcoming cohorts
We will move from rolling start dates to fixed monthly onboarding periods during the first two weeks of each month starting in 2026. The January cohort will start on January 5, followed by February 2–13 and March 2–13. From January onward, we will also deliver a shared program presentation before onboarding begins, covering program structure, expectations, tools, and community spaces.
In Q1 2026, we will onboard students from Nordic Riga University, Universidad Fidélitas, Krakow University of Economics, and Central New Mexico Community College, among others, applying these improvements as the program continues to grow.
Mentor huddles
Mentors will start meeting regularly, with monthly huddles becoming a recurring space to share feedback, surface challenges, and continue improving the program together. These sessions are open to all mentors and will take place on Slack in the private mentor channel, with a session on the last Wednesday of each month at 9am UTC, starting on January 28, and a session on the last Thursday of each month at 5pm UTC, starting on January 29.
Want to learn more about WordPress Credits? Visit the program page, join the #wpcredits Slack channel, and take a look at the handbook.
If you wish to apply as a mentor, please carefully read the mentor guide and apply using the form at the bottom of the guide.
Hello, it’s November. It’s time to decide who will represent the new community team next year!
In 2024, we made the following proposals to adapt the structure of Team RepTeam RepA Team Rep is a person who represents the Make WordPress team to the rest of the project, make sure issues are raised and addressed as needed, and coordinates cross-team efforts., which changed the term a Rep would serve to two (2) years, and to have 4 team reps, 2 that remain, 2 that will be elected. In 2025, four people served as reps.
Change the number of years in office from one to two years (step down is possible if desired), with one or two of the three remaining the following year to facilitate continuity
In 2026, we want to introduce 2 Team reps, along with 2 or 3 who will continue from the previous year.
Team Rep Role
Each team has representatives in the WordPress open sourceOpen SourceOpen Source denotes software for which the original source code is made freely available and may be redistributed and modified. Open Source **must be** delivered via a licensing model, see GPL. project, abbreviated as “reps”.
Team reps are responsible for communicating on behalf of the group to the other contributor groups via weekly updates, as well as occasional chats.
As a reminder, it is not called “team lead” for a reason. While the people elected as team reps will generally come from the pool of folks that people think of as experienced leaders, the team rep role is designed to change hands regularly.
This role does have a time commitment attached to it, at least one hour a week. The main tasks include:
Writing the agenda for the Community Team meetings
Coordinating the facilitator of the meeting and the posting of summaries
Discuss the community team’s annual goals
Keep an eye on the moving parts of the team and provide reports for quarterly updates
How Community Team Rep Elections Work
Following our election process last year, the Community team is planning on these key steps:
Nominations:
Anyone can nominate a Community team rep! Self-nominations are welcome too. To nominate someone or yourself, please comment in this post. If you would like to nominate someone in private, please reach out to @adityakane, @st810amaze, @thehopemonger, or @webtechpooja.
Nomination Open: 11 December 2025
Nomination Closes: 09 January 2026
We will only add people who respond positively to a nomination to the poll, so feel free to decline a nomination if you don’t feel like this is the right fit for any reason.
Voting
We will open voting with a new blog post as soon as nominations are closed. Community members can vote to select new Community Team Reps.
Voting Open: 15 January 2026
Voting Closes: 30 January 2026
Results
We will then be able to announce our new team reps in early February 2026!
Nominate now
Please nominate people for the Community team rep in the comments of this post or via private message by 09 January 2026.
Finally, if you have any questions, please also feel free to ask in the comments.
Nominations are closed.Thank you for all the comments!
The Community Team chat takes place the first Thursday of every month in the #community-team channel on SlackSlackSlack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/.
This meeting is meant for all contributors on the team and everyone who is interested in taking part in some of the things our team does. Feel free to join us, even if you are not currently active in the team!
You will find a preliminary agenda for the meeting below.
If you wish to add points to discuss, comment on this post or reach out to one of the team reps: @adityakane, @thehopemonger, @st810amaze, @webtechpooja. It does not need to be a blog post yet, the topic can be discussed during the meeting nevertheless. We use the same agenda for both meetings.
Call for meeting host If anyone is available to host the second sessions of the Community Team monthly meeting at 9pm UTC, please reach out to one of the team reps, who are all based in APAC and EMEA countries:@adityakane, @thehopemonger, @st810amaze, @webtechpooja.
Check-ins: Program and Event Supporters / Contributors
What have you been doing and how is it going?
What did you accomplish after the last meeting?
Are there any blockers?
Can other team members help you in some way?
Highlights to Note
Here are a few things everyone should be aware of.
This is your chance to discuss things that weren’t on the meeting agenda.
We invite you to use this opportunity to share anything that you want with the team. If you currently have a topic you’d like to discuss, add it to the comments of this post and we will try to update the agenda accordingly.
Hope to see you on Thursday, either in the Asia-Pacific / EMEA (12:00 UTC) or Americas-friendly version (21:00 UTC) of the meeting!
Welcome to the Monthly Education Buzz Report, your go-to source for highlights and updates on the WordPress Campus connect, WordPress Credits, and WordPress Student club education initiatives within the WordPress community. This report aims to celebrate, promote, and inform individuals across the WordPress community and beyond about the diverse educational endeavors underway.
11 more events are currently in the planning stages! We are actively working to expand our global reach and bring more educational opportunities to students worldwide. Come find us in the #campusconnect Slack channel.
Event Highlights
Campus Connect Catarroja (Valencia, Spain):
Event held on November 7
Included students and teachers from various educational centers
40+ participants built their first website on WordPress.comWordPress.comAn online implementation of WordPress code that lets you immediately access a new WordPress environment to publish your content. WordPress.com is a private company owned by Automattic that hosts the largest multisite in the world. This is arguably the best place to start blogging if you have never touched WordPress before. https://wordpress.com/
WPCC University of BrahmanbariaWPCC University of BrahmanbariaWPCC University of BrahmanbariaWPCC University of BrahmanbariaWPCC CatarrojaWPCC CatarrojaWPCC ZamboangaWPCC Zamboanga
If you’re interested in what it takes to be a WPCC mentorEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues., read the new Campus Connect Mentor Guide and complete the new Mentoring WordPress Campus Connect Events lesson on Learn WordPress.
Guidebook Published: The WPCC organizer guidebook is now available here.
Call for Testimonials: Seeking testimonials for the WPCC WordPress.orgWordPress.orgThe community site where WordPress code is created and shared by the users. This is where you can download the source code for WordPress core, plugins and themes as well as the central location for community conversations and organization. https://wordpress.org/ Education page, including:
Links to student-created websites
Student, teacher, and organizer testimonials
Format: Use first name and last name initial or first and last initial with campus name.
Sponsorship Guidelines: WPCC will also adhere to WordPress Credits sponsorship guidelines to not accept sponsorships limited to tools or resources alone; companies must also sponsor one or more mentorsEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues..
Mentor Growth: The program now has 28 active mentors, including 20 newly onboarded in the last month, greatly expanding student support capacity.
Educational Partnerships Expanding: Two new universities joined since the last update — Madrasa Ahmad’s Education (Bangladesh) and Krakow University of Economics (Poland). We now partner with 6 institutions across 3 regions.
Student Engagement Rising:88 students are actively working on contribution projects through the WordPress Credits course:
9 — University of Pisa (Italy)
18 — Fidélitas University (Costa Rica)
31 — Unifranz Santa Cruz (Bolivia)
30 — Ahmad’s Education (Bangladesh)
WordCampWordCampWordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. Learn more. Wrocław 2025: @gomp (Matt) Pilarski presented “How WordPress Builds the Next Generation of Contributors” and announced the first official WordPress Credits mentors in Poland — a key milestone. He also led Contributor DayContributor DayContributor Days are standalone days, frequently held before or after WordCamps but they can also happen at any time. They are events where people get together to work on various areas of https://make.wordpress.org/ There are many teams that people can participate in, each with a different focus. https://2017.us.wordcamp.org/contributor-day/https://make.wordpress.org/support/handbook/getting-started/getting-started-at-a-contributor-day/, guiding newcomers through their first contributions to WordPress.
Riga Nordic University Engagement: On November 24th, Maciej met university leadership to discuss integrating students into the Credits program — a step toward strengthening the local contributor pipeline and expanding open-source education.
WordCamp Pisa Highlights:
Credits mentors attended WC Pisa and met 6 University of Pisa students in person for the first time.
@marilufranchini (one of the program’s first students) opened Contributor Day with a well-received presentation on her project progress.
Students contributed across Community, Polyglots, and Video teams and held their first in-person team sync, resulting in a plan to relaunch the Italian WordPress community social presence.
@peiraisotta also shared a talk showcasing all WordPress.org educational programs.
Overall student progress has been consistent, impactful, and highly motivating for the community.
WP Credits mentors at WC Pisa 2025.@peiraisotta presenting Education at WC Pisa 2025WP Credits students at WC Pisa 2025 contributor dayWP Credits student Marilu Franchini opening WC Pisa contributor day with her mentor @francescodicandia
WordPress Student Clubs Updates
First Official Session at the GWECA Student Club:
Coordinator: Riddhima Upadhyay, a 3rd-year B. Tech Computer Science student at Government Women’s Engineering College, Ajmer.
Goals of the Club:
Develop web-creation skills with WordPress.
Enhance digital literacy in CMS, SEO, security, and branding.
Foster creativity and personal projects.
Create a collaborative learning community.
Boost career and freelance opportunities in web design and digital marketing.
Event Highlights: Introduction to WordPress and its significance in powering a large part of the internet.
Covered topics:
WordPress functionality and dashboard overview
Themes, plugins, and essential tools
Website building using WordPress
Career roles: Developer, UIUIUI is an acronym for User Interface - the layout of the page the user interacts with. Think ‘how are they doing that’ and less about what they are doing./UXUXUX is an acronym for User Experience - the way the user uses the UI. Think ‘what they are doing’ and less about how they do it. Designer, Content Creator, SEO Specialist, Website Manager, PluginPluginA plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party. & Theme Developer
Outcomes:
Students gained digital skills and insights into web development and freelancing opportunities.
Session was interactive, informative, and well-received.
Plans for more workshops and community activities to explore WordPress further.
Club Guide Development: A WordPress Student Club Guide is currently in progress to aid club activities and growth.
Other Happenings
Don’t miss out on the exciting information shared about education at this year’s State of the Word!
A new WordPress Education Programs handbook has been created to provide information for organizers, collaborators, and mentors on how they can get involved and engage in these programs.
The 2026 Global Partner Program has been announced and includes more community education benefits for sponsors (and the community!).
