Building Something Amazing: 4 years of Ohio State’s Hackathon Program Arnab Nandi / Meris Mandernach Computer Science / University Libraries The Ohio State University
Hackathon Event Format Hype Events Tutorials API Demos Team Formation Hackathon 24 hrs of hacking Judging Showcase Awards Mentorship Helpdesk Tech Talks Months leading up to event Weekend of event
Planning Timeline Amount of time Tasks 12 months Secure location, recruit team 6 months Recruit Sponsors, monthly meetings 3 months Weekly meetings, working groups, event marketing 2 months Order prizes, shirts, other swag, finalize sponsors 1 month Finalize food, cut off registration 2 weeks Dry run of event components 1 week Swag assembly, list of contacts 1 day Get some sleep!
Planning & Tooling • As directors: types of plans – Ramping up to the event: weekly meetings – Day-of: all the moving parts • Lessons – Invest in Communication – Delegate and Trust (allow failure) – Keep team motivated Tools that worked Tools that didn’t work
Post-event Surveys: Quotes "The ability to sit down for an extended period of time and just work on a project allowed me to accomplish more in 24 hours than I have since the start of the school year and it made me feel like I actually did something useful for once.” “Having an environment where I’m surrounded by people just like me – I felt much more motivated to learn.” “I came in with no computer, no team and no ideas – all of those things were eventually taken care of and I left with a working Android app. What more could I ask for?!”
Factoring in feedback: Over the years • Post event surveys: Listen & Optimize • Team sizes: no lone wolves, no mega-teams • Judging metrics: improve winner quality • Registration: speed up onboarding • Food: healthier options • Spaces: quiet zones/ layout • Creating a long-term culture: students return as sponsors / mentors
Spinoffs - One format does not fit all - Address unmet needs from existing events - HackOHI/O (5th year, 700+) - MakeOHI/O (3rd year, 150+) - Little i/o: high schools - OHI/O Showcase - Hype Events (8-10) - Industry Meet - Special Events
Folding into a program OHI/O Mentoring & Seed Funding Fund & spin off related events Travel grants & student sponsorship Year round events & talks HackOHIO: Annual Hackathon A PLATFORM FOR INFORMAL LEARNING
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