Originally posted here

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend HackCon, a conference for college hackathon organizers.

The weekend was filled with incredible content and some very thought provoking discussions. There’s a lot for the hackathon community to reflect on and I eagerly await jumping into those conversations. However, I want to share some personal highlights and themes while fresh in my mind.

Maturity

The health of hackathons is strong, very strong. During the later part of HackCon, the room joined in a lively discussion around “values” and how they’re reflected in the events which we design. The simple fact that the community is having this conversation reflects an incredible growth in sophistication. As hackathons continue to rapidly increase in size, volume, and subject matter, it’s critically important that the community takes time to consider why we’re throwing these events and what they stand for.

Diversity

HackCon was devoted to college hackathons and these events are undoubtedly the leading lights in the hackathon movement. However, within the US college hackathon scene, there is remarkable heterogeneity — some events focus on learning (ADI DevFest), while others are stages for the most remarkable hackers to showcase their talent (PennApps). This diversity increases the health of the hackathon scene and we should encourage all organizers to define clear goals, so that potential attendees can find the events best suited to their interests.

Events like hackBCA, which is organized by and targeted at high school students, show incredible promise at creating the next generation of hackers.

It’s great to see such a strong focus being put on inclusion at hackathons, both in terms of improving gender equality and helping budding hackers learn the skills necessary to take part. In regards to the latter, I was particularly impressed with the program put together by ADI at Columbia College.

Ensuring that hackathons are safe and respectful environments for all attendees is crucial and will continue to be so. At ChallengePost, we’ve been thinking about our role within the hackathon community. We’d love your feedback on this Quora thread addressing what we can do to boost gender equality.

People don’t remember facts, they remember stories.

One of the strongest calls to action was from Tess Rinearson, who edits the Medium collection Hackers and Hacking (where this will be cross posted). Tess called for more storytelling to celebrate both the hacks and the hackers that create them.

Storytelling maximizes the impact and reward of a hackathon. Solving problems through software inspires creators and witnesses alike, and we need to celebrate these stories. I believe there are several levels of storytelling necessary within the hackathons world; the movement, the events, the projects, and the people who create all three.

People go to hackathons for a variety reasons, some to learn, some to compete, some to network, and many more. As a hackathon organizer I used to think of my events as a platform for people to create. But now, I prefer to think of them as a way for people to tell stories about themselves and the things they make.

Many organizers are themselves developers, and it’s easy to fixate on the brilliance of a hack — but ultimately, the whole story is what will make it compelling. During a presentation I once made to a senior political leader, I was surprised by how quickly he moved the conversation beyond the projects to the teams behind them.

Events are getting big & demos are getting harder

The most technical issue discussed over the weekend was logistical: demos & judging. Most agreed that the “everyone demos to everyone” model doesn’t scale well at larger events. ‘Science fair’ judging, where judges and other participants get to experience hack demos personally at assigned tables, seems to be the most popular option currently. However, this method has it’s own issues; namely ensuring that all hacks get equal attention and that hackers get to experience each other’s work.

At ChallengePost we’re working on two fronts to help address this. First, our submission galleries are designed as ‘online science fairs’ — once you submit your hack, it’s visible to attendees, judges, and the world at large. Whether you’re five tables or five miles away, you can check out everyone’s work.

Second, we’ve created a mobile optimized judging experience. Judges can accurately score projects while walking around the room, while organizers can monitor their progress without having to chase them down. I think it’s a step in the right direction.

Next up for us on the College hackathon front is PennApps. We’re excited to continue working with them again and I look forward to seeing you all there!