Google Code In 2015

As you may have heard, ubuntu has been selected as a mentoring organization for Google Code In (GCI). GCI is a opportunity for high school students to learn about and participate in open source communities. As a mentoring organization, we'll create tasks and review the students work. Google recruits the students and provides rewards for those who do the best work. The 2015 contest runs from December 7, 2015 to January 25, 2016.

Are you excited?
On December 7th, we'll be gaining a whole slew of potential contributors. Interested students will select from the tasks we as a community have put forth and start working them. That means we need your help to both create those tasks, and mentor incoming students.

Mentoring!?
I know, I know, it sounds like work. And it is a bit of work, but not as much as you think. Mentors need to provide a task description and be available for questions if needed. Once the task is complete, check the work and mark the task complete. You can be a mentor for as little as a single task. The full details and FAQ can be found on the wiki. Volunteering to be a mentor means you get to create tasks to be worked, and you agree to review them as well. You aren't expected to teach someone how to code, write documentation, translate, do QA, etc, in a few weeks. Breathe easy.

You can help!
I know there is plenty of potential tasks lying in wait for someone to come along and help out. This is a great opportunity for us as a community to both gain a potential contributor, and get work done. I trust you will consider being a part of the process.

I'm still not sure
Please, do have a look at the FAQ, as well as the mentor guide. If that's not enough to convince you of the merits of the program, I'd invite you to read one student's feedback about his experience participating last year. Being a mentor is a great way to give back to ubuntu, get invovled and potentially gain new members.

I'm in, what should I do?
Contact myself, popey, or José who can add you as a mentor for the organization. This will allow you to add tasks and participate in the process. Here's to a great GCI!