This is the home of the Make Community team for the WordPress open sourceOpen SourceOpen Source denotes software for which the original source code is made freely available and may be redistributed and modified. Open Source **must be** delivered via a licensing model, see GPL. project!
Here is where we have policy debates, project announcements, and assist community members in organizing events.
Everyone is welcome to comment on posts and participate in the discussions regardless of skill level or experience.
Get Involved
If you love WordPress and want to help us do these things, join in!
WP Credits MentorEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues. huddles will take place on SlackSlackSlack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/. in the private mentor channel, with the following sessions: – last Wednesday of each month at 9am UTC, starting on January 28 – last Thursday of each month at 5pm UTC, starting on January 29
This week we hosted the first two WordPress Credits mentor huddles, and it was great to see mentorsEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues. joining from different regions to share experiences, challenges, and ideas. Thank you to everyone who made time to participate and help shape the program together!
We discussed the onboarding phase as one of the most critical moments for students to build confidence and start forming connections within the WordPress community. Many students feel overwhelmed by early setup tasks, such as creating accounts and configuring tools, which can slow engagement. This is why is fundamental that mentors have a clear understanding of the full student platform and the entire student journey, in addition to regularly review student reports to stay informed on progress, spot blockers early, and provide timely support.
Communication and engagement
Communication seems to be a recurring challenge, with students often hesitant to ask questions and share progress in an async environment. As a concrete improvement, we agreed to add mandatory steps that prompt students to introduce themselves and regularly post updates in Slack, including in their contribution team channels. Hopefully, this will help normalize communication, increase visibility, and strengthen students’ sense of belonging.
Language and learning resources
We acknowledged language as a significant barrier, particularly for Spanish speaking students navigating primarily English WordPress resources. To reduce friction, mentors agreed to expand multilingual support where possible and to enhance the mentor guide with resources that help assess students’ knowledge levels and tailor guidance across contribution teams.
Mentorship structure
While we explored the idea of assigning an additional technical or specialized mentor after students choose a contribution team, we confirmed that each student will continue to have one primary mentor assigned before the program starts, supporting them throughout the entire experience. When students choose a contribution area outside their mentor’s direct expertise, mentors will introduce them in the relevant team channels and help connect them with experienced contributors, while remaining responsible for weekly syncs and ongoing check-ins.
Improvements to the mentor course
On the training side, @lidarroy and @evarlese are expanding the mentor course to better support teachers and professionals who may not yet have contribution experience. Our goal is to help them confidently navigate WordPress community spaces and grow into well-prepared mentors.
Retention and community integration
We agreed that retaining graduates in the WordPress community beyond the program is a coreCoreCore is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. goal. We began exploring strategies such as inviting program graduates to mentor new students and creating “day in the life” videos that showcase different contribution roles. Tailored actions aimed at retaining graduates will be defined in January and implemented into the program.
Upcoming cohorts
We will move from rolling start dates to fixed monthly onboarding periods during the first two weeks of each month starting in 2026. The January cohort will start on January 5, followed by February 2–13 and March 2–13. From January onward, we will also deliver a shared program presentation before onboarding begins, covering program structure, expectations, tools, and community spaces.
In Q1 2026, we will onboard students from Nordic Riga University, Universidad Fidélitas, Krakow University of Economics, and Central New Mexico Community College, among others, applying these improvements as the program continues to grow.
Mentor huddles
Mentors will start meeting regularly, with monthly huddles becoming a recurring space to share feedback, surface challenges, and continue improving the program together. These sessions are open to all mentors and will take place on Slack in the private mentor channel, with a session on the last Wednesday of each month at 9am UTC, starting on January 28, and a session on the last Thursday of each month at 5pm UTC, starting on January 29.
Want to learn more about WordPress Credits? Visit the program page, join the #wpcredits Slack channel, and take a look at the handbook.
If you wish to apply as a mentor, please carefully read the mentor guide and apply using the form at the bottom of the guide.
At the Faculty of Computer Science of Universidad Fidélitas, we have taken a historic step: we signed an agreement with the WordPress FoundationWordPress FoundationThe WordPress Foundation is a charitable organization founded by Matt Mullenweg to further the mission of the WordPress open source project: to democratize publishing through Open Source, GPL software. Find more on wordpressfoundation.org., turning our Computer Science students into key players in a global experience. Thanks to this partnership, every student will have the opportunity to complete an official internship through WP Credits, directly connecting with the WordPress community and its impact-driven projects.
This agreement reflects a deep conviction: higher education must be tied to the real digital ecosystem, with experiences that prepare students for jobs and to become agents of change within global tech communities.
Elineth Morera Campos (DeputyProgram SupporterCommunity Program Supporters (formerly Deputies) are a team of people worldwide who review WordCamp and Meetup applications, interview lead organizers, and keep things moving at WordCamp Central. Find more about program supporters in our Program Supporter Handbook. Director of 100% virtual courses at the Faculty) together with Mary Hubbard at the signing of the WPCredits agreement at WCUS25.
The Birth of the WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025
To celebrate this alliance, we organized the first WordPress Campus Connect in San José, Costa Rica, from September 23 to 25, 2025.
This event marked a milestone as the first WordPress Campus Connect held in Latin America within a university, open to participation from any individual who was a university student, regardless of their field of study or academic level, and carried out in a three-day hackathon format. Throughout the event, participants engaged in hands-on workshops, received direct mentorship, and took part in the WordPress HackLab, a competition designed to transform ideas into digital products with real societal impact.
Photo taken by Gabriel Ramirez, volunteer at WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025
Photo taken by Gabriel Ramirez, volunteer at WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025
Photo taken by Gabriel Ramirez, volunteer at WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025
The Workshops: Learning with Energy and Creativity
The heart of Campus Connect lies in the eight workshops that guided students step by step in building their projects:
From Zero to Website in 90 Minutes – How to quickly start and launch a functional site.
Your Digital Empire, Brick by Brick – Strategic construction of a solid, scalable website.
Think Like a Rebel: Create Without Asking Permission – Fearless innovation, exploring creative freedom with design thinking.
Let’s Dress Up: Branding that Hypnotizes – Keys to visual identity and branding to stand out online.
Secret Vitamins for Your Website: What WordPress Doesn’t Tell You – Advanced tips and features to power up any site.
So Engaging They’ll Read with Eyes Closed – Strategies for clear, persuasive, and AI-enhanced content.
Houston, We Have a Website! (Go Live) – How to move a project from testing to production.
Your Story on Fire (and in 3 Acts) – Digital storytelling and impactful project presentations.
These workshops were not only technical but also creative and strategic, showing students that WordPress is a living, open, and limitless ecosystem.
Cely Cruz, co-organizer of WPCCSJ25, giving her talk
Daniel Solano, speaker at WPCCSJ25 giving his talk
Ariel Ramos, speaker at WPCCSJ25 giving his talk
Rita Robles Loaiza, Lead Organizer of WPCCSJ25 giving her talk
Nicole, Nazareth, and Yiqi, co-organizers of WPCCSJ25 and speakers at the event, before giving their talk.
Rosita Pereira, Co-organizer of WPCCSJ25 giving her talk
The Challenge: “Reconnecting the Human”
The central competition of the event was the WPCC 2025 Challenge: Reconnecting the Human.
The challenge stemmed from a paradox: we have never been so digitally connected, yet we have never felt so lonely. In response, teams had to create a digital product, presented in WordPress, that strengthens in-person human relationships within the university or local community.
The proposals were aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 3, 10, and 11) and ESG principles. Within this framework:
SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-Being) encouraged initiatives to strengthen emotional health and reduce loneliness.
SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) inspired inclusive and accessible solutions for the entire community.
SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) motivated proposals to rescue traditions and foster coexistence in public spaces.
At the same time, ESG principles framed the action plan: environmental care, positive social impact, and ethical, participatory governance. WordPress became the showcase to tell the story of the problem, the value proposition, the digital product, and the expected impact.
Photo taken by Gabriel Ramirez, volunteer at WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025
Photo taken by Gabriel Ramirez, volunteer at WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025
Photo taken by Gabriel Ramirez, volunteer at WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025
The Organizing Team: The Force Behind the Event
None of this would have been possible without the dedication of a passionate organizing team that brought this first WordPress Campus Connect to life:
They were responsible for transforming a vision into a real experience, coordinating workshops, mentorsEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues., logistics, communication, and every detail to make the event shine.
Part of the team of volunteers and organizers of WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025
Organizing Team of WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025
WordPress Club Fidélitas and Its Podcast
Another historic milestone was the official founding of the WordPress Club Fidélitas, a permanent space where students, faculty, and the community can come together to learn, share, and contribute to the WordPress ecosystem.
As part of this initiative, the Club’s podcast was launched, where we will talk about:
WordPress and its impact on the global web.
Technological innovation applied to education.
Academic and community experiences from Fidélitas.
This podcast will serve as a bridge between academia and the international WordPress community, amplifying the voices of our students and their projects.
The WordPress Campus Connect San José and the agreement with the WordPress Foundation are just the beginning.
Every student who participates in this program will take with them not only technical WordPress skills but also the experience of belonging to a global community, working with purpose, and using technology to generate human impact.
Inspiring Transformation
With this event, we proved that a university can be innovative, close, and global at the same time.
The invitation is clear: to keep dreaming, creating, and reconnecting the human through technology. Because when academia and community walk together, the impossible becomes reality.
Group photo of WordPress Campus Connect San José 2025 taken by Manuel Macias, volunteer from the WordPress San José community.
We’re looking for dedicated mentorsEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues. to guide the next generation of contributors in WordPress Credits, a flagship educational program of the WordPress FoundationWordPress FoundationThe WordPress Foundation is a charitable organization founded by Matt Mullenweg to further the mission of the WordPress open source project: to democratize publishing through Open Source, GPL software. Find more on wordpressfoundation.org..
WordPress Credits connects university students with real-world, open-source contribution opportunities. Over 150 hours, students learn how to collaborate in distributed teams, work on meaningful projects, and gain valuable skills that bridge academia and professional pathways.
MentorEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues. Requirements
Minimum 2 hours per week available for the entire duration of the program (current cohorts last 13 to 18 weeks but it may vary)
Availability to sync once a week with students
Ability to provide asynchronous support (SlackSlackSlack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/., email, or other tools)
Commitment to provide a meaningful mentorship experience
Mentor Responsibilities
Guide up to 5 students per mentor (if you have more availability, let us know — we may assign additional students)
Support students in understanding contribution tasks and navigating the WordPress community
Encourage collaboration, accountability, and skill growth
Provide feedback on student progress and final projects
Additional Information
Mentors will be vetted before selection. You will receive an acceptance or rejection email after review.
Currently, we are onboarding students from a limited number of institutions. However, we want to prepare a pool of mentors worldwide so we can match you with students as soon as more universities join the program.
Your mentorship will help students connect their academic learning to real-world practice, while shaping the next wave of WordPress contributors.
Apply Now
If you’re interested in becoming a mentor, please complete the application form:
Welcome to the Monthly Education Buzz Report, your go-to source for highlights and updates on all education-related initiatives within the WordPress community. This report aims to celebrate, promote, and inform individuals across the WordPress community and beyond about the diverse educational endeavors underway.
Inaugural Global Event: This program marked the first-ever global WordPress Campus Connect event, successfully promoting digital innovation and web development skills among students. It was a collaborative effort with CIFP Santa Catalina, Ribering, and WordPress.comWordPress.comAn online implementation of WordPress code that lets you immediately access a new WordPress environment to publish your content. WordPress.com is a private company owned by Automattic that hosts the largest multisite in the world. This is arguably the best place to start blogging if you have never touched WordPress before. https://wordpress.com/.
Hands-on Learning & Awards: Students participated in multiple practical workshops and presented their projects, culminating in a Final Gala. Top projects earned opportunities for further exposure, including presenting at WordCampWordCampWordCamps are casual, locally-organized conferences covering everything related to WordPress. They're one of the places where the WordPress community comes together to teach one another what they’ve learned throughout the year and share the joy. Learn more. US 2025. Students also received formal recognition through awards and diplomas.
First in Southeast Asia: WCC Cagayan de Oro holds the distinction of hosting the inaugural WordPress Campus Connect event in Southeast Asia.
Engaging Activities: Mr. Tanedo hosted a fun and engaging WordPress trivia game, with active participants receiving branded swag from generous sponsors.
Future Collaborations: PHINMA-COC expressed strong interest in future collaborations, offering to connect the program with the wider PHINMA network of universities and colleges across the country.
And 8 more events are currently in the planning stages! We are actively working to expand our global reach and bring more educational opportunities to students worldwide. Come find us in the #campusconnect Slack channel.
Event Highlights
Scholarship Success Story: A student from the WordPress Campus Connect Ribera del Duero event in Aranda de Duero was awarded a scholarship to attend WordCamp US! His inspiring experience was featured in this article and even published by his school in this article. This clearly demonstrates the tangible benefits and significant opportunities that stem from Campus Connect events.
Other Program Updates
New Handbook Page for Certificates of Participation: To streamline processes for event organizers, the WordPress Campus Connect handbook page has been updated. This new resource provides detailed steps for issuing Certificates of Participation at WordPress Campus Connect events, making it easier for students to receive formal recognition for their involvement.
Scholarship Nomination Guidance: We’ve published comprehensive guidance on how to nominate a student to receive a scholarship to attend a flagship WordCamp. This is an essential read for all event organizers!
Official #wpcreditsSlackSlackSlack is a Collaborative Group Chat Platform https://slack.com/. The WordPress community has its own Slack Channel at https://make.wordpress.org/chat/. Channel: The official #wpcredits Slack channel has been created to ensure project progress and decision-making are open to all interested contributors. We encourage anyone interested to join the conversation there.
Public GitHubGitHubGitHub is a website that offers online implementation of git repositories that can easily be shared, copied and modified by other developers. Public repositories are free to host, private repositories require a paid subscription. GitHub introduced the concept of the ‘pull request’ where code changes done in branches by contributors can be reviewed and discussed before being merged by the repository owner. https://github.com/ Repository: The public GitHub repository WPCredits-Tracker and its related setup project have been opened to track task priorities and completion transparently.
Applications Underway: We have started receiving applications from companies willing to sponsor mentorsEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues. and student needs, as well as from interested institutions and students. We are still actively seeking more companies to support and join the program. If your company is interested, please apply via this form.
Other Happenings
Training Team Course Cohorts Are Back!: The WordPress Training Team is relaunching its free, 6-week guided training sessions. The next cohort will focus on “WordPress BlockBlockBlock is the abstract term used to describe units of markup that, composed together, form the content or layout of a webpage using the WordPress editor. The idea combines concepts of what in the past may have achieved with shortcodes, custom HTML, and embed discovery into a single consistent API and user experience. Editor Basics,” starting soon. These cohorts offer a fantastic opportunity to learn a specific topic in depth with the guidance of a subject matter expert and the support of an online learning group. You can find more details and sign up here.
Learn More About Campus Connect: If you’re interested in understanding the full scope of WordPress Campus Connect events, please refer to this handbook page.
Explore the WordPress Credits Program: Universities and educational institutions interested in participating in the WordPress Credits program can fill out this interest form to receive more information and get started. This program aims to integrate WordPress education directly into academic curricula.
There has been a lot of talk and momentum lately about WordPress in the education space. From the development of the WordPress Campus Connect event series and its affiliated WordPress Student Clubs, to the new WordPress Credits initiative, there is so much the community can offer the youth in education now in a way that is more recognized by the WordPress FoundationWordPress FoundationThe WordPress Foundation is a charitable organization founded by Matt Mullenweg to further the mission of the WordPress open source project: to democratize publishing through Open Source, GPL software. Find more on wordpressfoundation.org.. This post will break down the current initiatives, how you can get involved as a volunteer, contributor, or organizer, and how sponsors can also get involved.
WordPress Campus Connect
WordPress Campus Connect events aim to educate and empower the next generation of WordPress users and developers by providing accessible, hands-on learning experiences. They are one or multiple day events that aim to introduce students to WordPress capabilities, equip them with essential skills like website building and SEO, and expose them to diverse career opportunities within the WordPress ecosystem.
Goal and Purpose:
To educate and empower the next generation of WordPress users and developers by providing accessible, hands-on learning experiences.
Introduces students to WordPress’ capabilities, highlighting its versatility.
Equips students with essential WordPress skills (website building, theme/pluginPluginA plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party usage, basic SEO).
Exposes students to diverse career opportunities within the WordPress ecosystem (web development, design, content creation).
Fosters networking and mentorship opportunities with industry professionals.
Aims to make WordPress education inclusive and widely available, promoting a free and open web.
How to Get Involved:
Organizers: If you’re a contributor or member of an educational institution interested in organizing this kind of event, fill out this form.
WordPress Student Clubs allow students to sustain on-campus activities and events, encouraging ongoing engagement and education around WordPress. They provide opportunities for students to learn more about WordPress and empower student organizers to grow their local, on-campus community group.
WordPress Student Clubs allow students to sustain on-campus activities and events, encouraging ongoing engagement and education around WordPress. These clubs can be formed by campuses that have hosted a WordPress Campus Connect event, or by those that have not.
Key Benefits:
Provides opportunities for students who missed initial events to learn about WordPress.
Empower student organizers to grow their local, on-campus community group.
Student Clubs may host various types of events like monthly meetupsMeetupMeetup groups are locally-organized groups that get together for face-to-face events on a regular basis (commonly once a month). Learn more about Meetups in our Meetup Organizer Handbook. and support recurring WordPress Campus Connect events.
WordPress Credits program integrates students from universities and other educational institutions into the WordPress open-source project by providing structured guidance and real-world experience. It aims to eliminate barriers to entry, foster transferable skills, and nurture the next generation of contributors, creating connections between academic institutions, students, and companies.
While the name includes “Credits,” participation is open to institutions that do not use a credit-based system, as long as they formally recognize the completion of the contribution program as part of the student’s curriculum.
The coreCoreCore is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. activity of the program is contributing directly to WordPress, meaning students work on projects that help maintain, grow, and make WordPress more accessible to users worldwide.
Goal and Purpose:
To integrate university students into the WordPress open sourceOpen SourceOpen Source denotes software for which the original source code is made freely available and may be redistributed and modified. Open Source **must be** delivered via a licensing model, see GPL. project by providing structured guidance and real-world experience.
Aims to eliminate barriers to entry for students and newcomers (lack of guidance, practical experience).
Participants develop transferable skills and actively engage with the WordPress community through structured onboarding and personalized contribution projects.
The program’s core activity is WordPress contribution: students work on projects that support the maintenance, growth, and global accessibilityAccessibilityAccessibility (commonly shortened to a11y) refers to the design of products, devices, services, or environments for people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design ensures both “direct access” (i.e. unassisted) and “indirect access” meaning compatibility with a person’s assistive technology (for example, computer screen readers). (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accessibility) of the WordPress ecosystem.
Seeks to nurture the next generation of contributors, ensuring WordPress remains innovative, inclusive, and sustainable.
Fosters connections between academic institutions, students, and companies within the WordPress ecosystem.
How to Get Involved:
Universities and Educational Institutions: If you are interested in participating in the WordPress Credits program, please reach out by filling the interest form.
Students: If you’re a student and find this project interesting, please share it with your professors or academic advisors, as applications must be submitted by your institution.
Companies: We invite companies in the WordPress ecosystem to support this initiative by:
Sponsoring mentorsEvent SupporterEvent Supporter (formerly Mentor) is someone who has already organised a WordCamp and has time to meet with their assigned mentee every 2 weeks, they talk over where they should be in their timeline, help them to identify their issues, and also identify solutions for their issues. to guide new contributors.
Providing tools and resources that help students succeed.
