[hackerspaces] question about workshop strategy

[Ben Brown]

Comments inline.

On 10/11/2013 11:53 AM, Florencia Edwards wrote:
> Hi all, I wanted to ask you how do you do it with the workshops.
>
> 1. How do you divide the winnings between the makerspace and the 
> teacher by percentage?

We encourage members who charge fees for workshops to donate part of 
their profit from a workshop, but we don't require it. That said, we'd 
likely require sometime from an outside group who's using our space for 
their paid event.

>
> 2. Are all the teachers members? Is it a requirement?

No. We've had teachers from both inside and outside our membership. 
Public events get approved on by the board, so long as they're on line, 
it can be anyone.

>
> 3. Are workshops for members only?

It's not a requirement. We've had both public and members-only 
workshops, it's up to whoever puts it on.

>
> 4. If teachers are not members and workshops are not members only, how 
> do the people that go to the workshop relate to the makerspace. How 
> can they make community if they only go for some classes.

(answering #5 as well) We encourage the teacher to introduce outside 
participants to the space and describe what we do, as well as inviting 
them to our Tuesday Open Night, which has happened every week since day 
one. Our workshops tend to be maker-centric, which also helps in keeping 
participant interest in the space, though that's not always the case.

We find awareness to be a powerful tool - even if participants 
themselves don't have much interest in a hackerspace, they know who we 
are and will ultimately spread the word.

Ben