Steffi LaZerte

Yanina Bellini Saibene

Do you remember your first contribution to open source?Or are you still
waiting to make it?

Contributing to open source can be very rewarding, but also incredibly
intimidating.When we asked about first time contributions on the
[rOpenSci
Slack](https://contributing.ropensci.org/resources.html#channels),people
recalled the challenges and mistakes they made, but mostly how much they
learned from and enjoyed that experience.For open source maintainers,
contributions can also lead to mixed feelings,as reviewing contributions
and making your repository contributor-friendly^[1](#fn:1){.footnote-ref
role="doc-noteref"}^ can take time.Despite this, contributions can super
helpful and mentoring contributors is rewarding!

Because of both the value and the challenge to both contributors and
maintainers,we're exited to announce a special series of activities to
support first contributors to rOpenSci packages 🎉.

These activities consist of

- a **Community Call "Making and Supporting First Time Contributions"**
  (January 2025), and
- two **2-hour Coworking (mini-hack-a-thon) Sessions** (January-March
  2025)

Exact dates and times will depend on the availability of speakers and
maintainers.

In the Community Call we'll discus how maintainers can benefit from and
support contributors,as well as how to go about making contributions and
why you might want to.

In the coworking sessions rOpenSci staff will support rOpenSci package
maintainersand contributors in making contributions.As a contributor,
you can come to the coworking session to work with others or ask
questions andyou can continue to contribute throughout the week as part
of this activity(of course you can [continue to
contribute](https://contributing.ropensci.org/resources.html#issues)
afterwards as well).

If this sounds interesting, keep an eye on the [Events](/events) page,
our social media feeds on[Mastodon](https://hachyderm.io/@rOpenSci)
and[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/ropensci/), or the
rOpenSci [Newsletter](/news)to hear when the dates are settled.

In the meanwhile we're looking for some interested maintainers...

## A call for maintainers

Because we want this to be an enjoyable and valuable experience for
everyone,we want to solicit support from maintainers of rOpenSci
packages.For each coworking mini-hack-a-thon, we're looking for about 5
maintainers to support participants inmaking contributions to their
packages.

However, we know that maintenance can be a
challenge^[2](#fn:2){.footnote-ref role="doc-noteref"}^ and finding the
timeto support others can also be difficult. That's why we're happy to
announce thatwe have funding^[3](#fn:3){.footnote-ref
role="doc-noteref"}^ to offer a stipend to maintainers who participate.

To participate, we ask that maintainers fill out the application form
(below) by **Nov 24th, 2024**^[4](#fn:4){.footnote-ref
role="doc-noteref"}^.

Then, if participating, we ask that maintainers

- Work with rOpenSci staff to pick dates/times for the coworking events
  which best work for everyone.
- [Create and/or identify issues](/blog/2023/09/19/help-wanted/) inyour
  rOpenSci repository as 'Help wanted' and 'Good first issue'. These
  canrange from documentation to coding changes. We just ask that some
  issues are relatively accessible to contributors with less experience.
- Attend one of the Coworking sessions to be available to offer advice
  or answer questions.
- Have some availability before and after the Coworking event to respond
  via GitHub and Slack toissues, comments, or PRs which may arise from
  contributors outside of the two-hour coworking slot.

If you participate, you can also expect that

- We will connect with you before the events to find a date/time for the
  coworking sessions andsee if you have any questions regarding
  issue-labelling or the coworking sessions.
- We will be available to support you during the Coworking sessions on
  Zoom,as well as on GitHub, Slack, or by email before and after.
- You will receive a \$200 USD stipend to help offset the time you spend
  teaching and mentoring these new contributors.

### Interested in participating?

**Please fill out [an application
form](https://airtable.com/appRpJelSoXWcYCG1/shrgFCAdgR4g8k45Q) by Nov
24th, 2024.**

**Note:** We understand that without dates/times, you can't fully commit
to being available,but once we know who is interested in participating,
we will try to find a time that works for everyone!

## Want to contribute to Open Source Software?

Great! These events are designed to support first time contributors, but
any and all contributors are welcome!Stay tuned for more announcements
about the Community Call date and dates of the Coworking sessions.Once
we know which maintainers will be participating we'll have a better idea
of exactly when things will happen.

And remember, although these Coworking sessions will be a great time to
participate,you can also make contributions asynchronously in the week
around the event,or any other time by checking out issues on our [Help
Wanted](/help-wanted/) page.

## Resources

- Blog: [Communication & Collaboration with Contributors in an
  Open-Source
  Organization](/blog/2022/06/14/communication-with-contributors-in-an-open-source-organization/)
- Blog: [What Does It Mean to Maintain a
  Package?](/blog/2023/02/07/what-does-it-mean-to-maintain-a-package/)
- Blog: [Maintain or Co-Maintain an rOpenSci
  Package!](/blog/2022/10/17/maintain-or-co-maintain-an-ropensci-package/)
- Blog: [Attract Contributors with 'help wanted'
  Issues](/blog/2023/09/19/help-wanted/)
- Community Call: [Set Up Your Package to Foster a
  Community](/commcalls/apr2021-pkg-community/)

::: {.footnotes role="doc-endnotes"}

------------------------------------------------------------------------

1.  ::: {#fn:1}
    See blog posts[Attract Contributors with 'help wanted'
    Issues](/blog/2023/09/19/help-wanted/) and[Set Up Your Package to
    Foster a Community -- Community Call
    Summary](/blog/2021/04/28/commcall-pkg-community/) [↩︎](#fnref:1){.footnote-backref
    role="doc-backlink"}
    :::

2.  ::: {#fn:2}
    See blog posts[What Does It Mean to Maintain a
    Package?](/blog/2023/02/07/what-does-it-mean-to-maintain-a-package/)
    and[My Experience With Long Term Maintenance Of An R
    Package](/blog/2024/08/20/my-experience-with-long-term-maintenance-of-an-r-package/) [↩︎](#fnref:2){.footnote-backref
    role="doc-backlink"}
    :::

3.  ::: {#fn:3}
    Thanks to a [NumFocus Small Development
    Grant](https://numfocus.org/programs/small-development-grants)
    🎉 [↩︎](#fnref:3){.footnote-backref role="doc-backlink"}
    :::

4.  ::: {#fn:4}
    As we won't have room for more than about 10 maintainers, we may
    need to select from among the applications, depending how many we
    receive. [↩︎](#fnref:4){.footnote-backref role="doc-backlink"}
    :::
:::


Do you remember your first contribution to open source?Or are you still waiting to make it?  Contributing to open source can be very rewarding, but also incredibly intimidating.When we asked about first time contributions on the rOpenSci Slack,people recalled the challenges and mistakes they made, but mostly how much they learned from and enjoyed that experience.For open source maintainers, contributions can also lead to mixed feelings,as

Messaggi di Rogue Scholar

Looking for Maintainers to Support First-Time Contributors