Camps have thought they could benefit from mentor identifiers like DrupalCons have.
It's expensive to print t-shirts for mentors for every Drupal event,
events could print t-shirts that mentors bring back to other events.
Benefits
- Increased recognition through repetition, a global representation of mentors.
- Simple for events, no need to design something new. Just locally source, re-using design.
- A better fit for purpose, no need for event logos, they could even have the word "mentor" on them!
- Reusability means we can invest in better quality or a better range of sizes/fits.
- Reusability! Every camp with sprints can support mentors and sprinters better.
- Buttons can be worn all the days of an event on the name tag/lanyard.
Concerns
- Picking one source, and shipping to places far around the world is expensive: use local sources.
- T-shirts are expense: can also have buttons.
- Cons, or big camps might like to have their own branded, differently colored shirts: that is ok. This would just be an option for events that wanted to re-use.
- Buttons are only on the front, not as easy to spot across a room, or from behind (when a mentor is helping another person).
Logistics
- Events would order some for their local mentors.
- Mentors would take their own shirts home (and wash them themselves).
- If a mentor went to another event that was re-using the shirt color, they would bring their shirt with them.
- New mentors at an event would get their new shirts from the event.
Colors:
Green has been the mentor color from the beginning.
Light green: 77C, 0M, 100Y, 0K
Dark green: 85C, 20M, 100Y, 5K
Shirt design:
TBD
Shirt sources:
TBD
Button:
Button sources:
See Button issue: https://www.drupal.org/node/2390841 in the mentor issue queue
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Comments
I think there are a few steps
I think there are a few steps we can take to gain all of the benefits for mentoring.
I like. It's thrifty, and
I like. It's thrifty, and means people can bring a shirt with them to various events without putting the onus on small camps to make shirts. And, as you noted, people will be inclined to get a shirt that fits them better. It also standardizes the noticeability of mentors. (Just look for the people in the blue mentor shirts)
Downsides. Could get boring. People like getting different shirts at different events, like a badge of honor. (though we could still do this for Druplcon) Could be counterproductive, as people get trained to only look for people with the right shirt? Instead of promoting the idea that any could/should be there to help.
Yes please!
My experiences of sprints at camps in Europe are that people turn up and self elect themselves to mentor. Mentoring is rarely part of a camps sprints plans so nothing is in place, but we always have newbies at sprints and always people ready to mentor.
Having a universal t-shirt for the usual group of mentors that choose to help out at camp sprints will be extremely useful.
Firstly it's comforting to newbies. Sprints can move away from being just a group of people in front of laptops, you can instantly see support and organisation just from having a few people wearing the same shirts.
Secondly it helps the mentors get more into the role. If you are dressed the part you assume the role better. It's far too easy to just slip away into the world of your laptop at small sprints. At DrupalCons in a mentor t-shirt everyone knows I am expected to help, I stand out and I work hard at mentoring.
My thoughts on introducing reusable shirts:
These camp mentor shirts should have...
The same colour - eg. bright green (no matter what is printed on them they are the same colour).
Somewhere on the shirt it should say something like MENTOR - possibly the top of the back, we spend all our time hunched over tables and sat with people :)
Bonus: A space for clued up camps or sprints who want to support mentoring. So they can print their sponsors/logos on eg. the front like DrupalCons do now.
@davidhernandez I see your point about the could get boring. I don't mind these t-shirts being boring, they serve a purpose. We all tend to wear our mentoring t-shirts from Drupalcons at camp sprints but these aren't recognisable to newcomers, we all don't match, people just comment on how bright my shirt is and that's it.
Yes! I would very much prefer
Yes! I would very much prefer one, quality (soft!) tshirt that fits and I can reuse at events.
If the shirt design had lighter/ white areas, then you can apply clear stickers for easy/cheap per-event customization -- seen it done by the DrupalCamp Spain folks in Amsterdam :)
flying across the globe
So one of the points Lewis raised is it's expensive to print t-shirts for mentors for every Drupal event. If we assume events have the same mentors all the time, then this is not a problem, but if they have different or some new mentors, then its a key thing to consider. Then you still need to print some shirts (which has a big startup cost) or fly them in from across the globe (which is not cheap either and also contributes well to global warming). IMHO would not be ideal to get Chinese shirts in the hundreds, print them in California and ship them to France, Sweden, Hungary, etc.
Also I would argue that the word "Mentor" may not necessarily fits with a global audience. It is understood in Hungary but not sure it would apply universally.
So what's left then is the common colour. It is easier and cheaper to source shirts in a given color "locally" (may still be Chinese manufactured but at least not via California :). I mean do we NEED to have something printed on the shirts for them to be recognisable as mentors? Especially if the Mentor word does not work in the given culture, its the same as if it did not have anything on it.
Too radical? :D
I think it's fine not having
I think it's fine not having the word mentor printed on them. We could have a common design, as well as color, which would be universal.
Would it be too much to have a design created for the shirts to put in the Drupal.org store? Is it a burden to ask people to for their own shirt? Or at least make the design and color choice freely available so people can have their own made.
I will say that I don't believe I've ever received, or made, any mentor related items for anything but a DrupalCon. Have people commonly done this at other events? And have things other than t-shirts been used?
Central vs. Distributed
Interesting idea.
Concerns:
1) Some local events might prefer to brand T-Shirts with their local logo and have them consistent with other event materials.
2) Distribution - as Gábor points out, distribution around the world could be tricky.
Solution:
1) Settle on a standard color and rough design for T-Shirt. Example: Saphire Blue T-Shirt with "Mentor" (or local equivalent written across the back.
2) Create a batch of them with for Core Mentoring events with a standard/generic Drupal logo on the front (possibility of revising/updating logo on front for specific events).
3) Offer local organizers the opportunity to order pre-made shirts from Drupal Association (or whoever) OR create their own shirts based upon template.
Benefits:
1) The most recognizable feature of mentor shirts at an event is their common color. If mentors settled on a single color shirt, the specific logo on it might not matter as much.
2) Experienced mentors could bring shirts from previous events and be immediately recognized.
3) If local groups want to create their own shirts - they can. But, if they stick with the standard color/layout then others that show up late with their own shirt will still be recognizable (and have a very similar shirt (if not the same).
4) If a local camp would like to have a few mentors available to them, they can order small quantities of pre-made mentor shirts (generic) rather than put in a very small custom order (which they are unlikely to do because of cost).
5) Having a standard color/layout and the possibility of placing small orders of generic "mentor" t-shirts makes it simpler (reduces the barrier) for local groups to have an active and visible mentoring program at their camps.
Tim Erickson
Triplo
How 'bout a badge? Or a
How 'bout a badge? Or a sash?
Seriously, a button would suffice
Snake Hill
nice idea but in my opinion not worth the effort
I understand the motivation but given the logistical reality and expense involved, I do not think this is a good idea at all. (Printing, shipping, tracking, WASHING, etc.)
I don't see any need for a specific shirt or color of shirt at all events (the percentage of people that attend events in different places is still small even if there is a vocal and high profile minority that tours from one camp to another)
Many wont want to wear t-shirts at all, opting for more comfortable or formal attire. The way people in different communities want to be identified (what term, the use/meaning of certain colors in different cultures) will never be unified.
I'd suggest that each event make these decisions on their own, I'd also suggest buttons or stickers over custom shirts. For example, 100 buttons at http://www.portlandbuttonworks.com/custom-buttons will cost between 25 and 40 US $ and they can have whatever color, image or words resonate with that event/community. That's probably less per event than the shipping costs to send shirts from event to event.
I think we have to be careful
I think we have to be careful of getting caught up in perfectionism. Right now we have 0 mentor shirts that can be reused at any event. By just changing the design of the shirts that are handed out at Drupalcon, we now have some shirts that can be reused. We are already seeing some benefits. Anything else is a long term goal.
There is no requirement to ship these from a central printing location, anyone should be able to print this t-shirt, anywhere in the world.
how does that help cost?
How does that help cost of printing unless you assume its always the same mentors? Usually the per shirt price is not that much once you spin up printing of a shirt type but spinning up is more steep. At least in Hungary. You may now printers with different business models in the target countries you have in mind in which case ignore this argument :)
True, I think there is a
True, I think there is a balance here. Maybe some kind member of the community in Hungary who goes to a lot of sprint events could take charge of the shirts and bring them to events. That sounds sensible. Shipping them from one central location around the world sounds too extreme (not that you were suggesting that)
Tracking and washing
Tracking and washing shouldn't be a concern. I don't think anyone is thinking the shirts would be sent back for re-use. The shirt would be kept by the mentor to use at any event they attend. At least that's what I was thinking.
I don't think a button works, because it doesn't have visibility. When someone is turned away or sitting down you can't see it. A sash would be visible, and easier to "apply" to any outfit.
Our original idea for this
I was part of the original discussion and my take on this idea was to decide on a standard "uniform" for mentors/helpers/sprint leads at sprints outside of Drupalcons. The main aim is to get these people consistently recognised as helpers or at least obviously standing out from everyone else at sprints.
A lot of people do not recognise the role of one single person wearing a past DrupalCon mentor shirt at a sprint. They may have never been to that event and don't understand the concept yet. If a good few people were wearing an obviously bright colour they could sense that the shirts have a purpose, that 5 people aren't wearing bright orange as a coincidence and hopefully click that the people wearing them are helping out in some way at the sprint.
I think it doesn't matter what it is printed on them. We just want to agree a standard (so a shirt colour at least) for mentors/sprint leads/helpers around the world who want to use this concept.
Then sprints/camps/initiatives/events/individuals can do what they wish with the designs, they can choose what they think is best, at the end of the day it is to benefit their sprints.
I'm assuming the mentors in the frontend sprints still wish to give this a go. We will be testing this concept out starting in January and report on how we find it.
If we do this, please pick
If we do this, please pick "mentor" green. https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/3670915748/6fc22c5f42c3d682367910d0...
I think making a resource available for camps if they want to use them, is a good idea.
Cathy Theys
Updated issue summary with
Updated wiki summary with some points from the comments.
Cathy Theys
There is also a sticker (See
There is also a sticker (See the mentor issue about role cards https://www.drupal.org/node/2269681 )
Cathy Theys
Thanks for updating the issue
Thanks for updating the issue summary. Seems like we have a next steps:
Hi guys! I like the idea
Hi guys!
I like the idea behind a common t-shirt for mentors. I think we don't have to make it complicated. Forget about shipping and storing t-shirts. Provide a design and let's leave it to be used.
On the spanish association we have a t-shirt for volunteers that we reutilize in each event. We printed a big batch of t-shirts the first time and we print less and less every time. Volunteers usually repeat helping in the events and they know they have to bring the t-shirt.
If each event want to have a brand mentor t-shirt, let's just ask them to use a common color. Or we can have a common back and leave the front to be used. I like the green option because I think is not too common (I might have around 30 drupal t-shirts and only one is green).
I have already "reutilized" mentor t-shirts. When I went to a sprint I brought my Prague mentor t-shirt. I also used it on Amsterdam sprints, until I got the Amsterdam mentor t-shirt.
I also like the idea of @alimac about having white spaces on the t-shirts for stickers (I was one of the spaniards who did it in Amsterdam). We put little stickers on the white parts of the amsterdam t-shirt and worked quite well.
If we are not sure about using the word "mentor" we can try to put a sentence that people will easily understand and that other events can translate, if it's necessary. Something like "Do you need help?", "Can I help you?" or "I will help you contribute to Drupal".
I think it would be awesome if people associate the green t-shirts to the mentors. I think it can help to bring more people into mentoring. And I also like the idea of being able to reuse one t-shirt instead of having a hundred drupal t-shirts (I already have enough!).
Best regards,
David Hernández (not davidhernandez :D ).
An example. Maybe instead of
An example. Maybe instead of "mentor" we can come up with some universal symbol?
There is also this site
There is also this site http://teespring.com/dcalpeadria
(NOTE: I am not related to them, just saw that the organizers of this camp used this)
Maybe the design could be uploaded here and so all the events could use this to order t-shirts from them. Then you could know that are mentor shirts are the same independently of color and size.
PS
Or maybe we could come up with a site that is dedicated to Drupal shirts. With the logos of all past events so that you could get a t-shirts that you loves so much from a past event. Or even extend this to have not only t-shrits ...
Personally I would love it if
Personally I would love it if we could move a rethink of the word 'mentor' out of scope. :)
Mentor is the word that is commonly used online and at all Drupalcons. It's spread widely enough for it to become well known, any discussion to change the name is a big decision.
Here's a design idea: "Drupal Mentor" in really big words, high on the back. The front is left blank to give flexibility for any events or sponsors. We could have a suggestion front side design that is optional.
Resurrecting this post. I
Resurrecting this post. I like the idea and I don't want to see it die on the depth of a group.
I like the design propossed by Lewis. I think we can even remove the word "Drupal", as we will probably be using them on a Drupal event context, and the front part will probably have a Druplicon or a Drupal event logo.
About trying to find another word instead of "Mentor", I think all of us use that word and I think it can be confusing to change it at this stage. But, most important than the word, I think is to always use the green color, so even if someone changes the word "mentor" for a translation, they still can use the t-shirt in another Drupal event.
I like the shirt in lewis's
I like the shirt in lewis's comment.
Cathy Theys
I like this too.
I like this too.
At drupalcon latinamerica we
At drupalcon latinamerica we had good success also with having dark/black shirts (jsmith from Bluehost brought them) and using green painters tape to draw decorations across the back and sleeves.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/129435454@N05/16337793947
Cathy Theys
side note: there is a g.d.o
side note: there is a g.d.o group for mentors https://groups.drupal.org/mentoring
Cathy Theys