We designed the rOpenSci Champions Program with a mentorship aspect. Mentoring plays a significant role in the growth and development of both mentors and mentees alike.

We designed the rOpenSci Champions Program with a mentorship aspect. Mentoring plays a significant role in the growth and development of both mentors and mentees alike.

We designed the rOpenSci Champions Program with a mentorship aspect. Mentoring plays a significant role in the growth and development of both mentors and mentees alike.

The Champions Program got off to a great start in 2023! We’re happy to report on the first couple of months in our first run of the rOpenSci Champions Program. In September 2022, we launched the program, advertising for both mentors and mentees to apply. We received a total of 102 applications from 31 different countries. Seventy-four applications were for champions and twenty eight for mentors.

rOpenSci is seeking mentors to support our inaugural cohort of rOpenSci Champions! The rOpenSci Champions Program is for people from historically and systematically excluded groups who are interested in contributing to rOpenSci and the broader ecosystem of open source and open science communities.

Why a Champions Program? Champion programs are designed to identify, recognize, and reward passionate community members. At rOpenSci, we recognize that there is a dismaying lack of diversity in the ecosystem of research software and open source communities. The R Community is no exception; its developers are overwhelmingly white, male, and from a handful of countries.