[Noisebridge-discuss] Arduino!

Mike Schachter mike at mindmech.com
Sat Jul 10 00:46:48 UTC 2010


Sorry I'm having trouble shutting up right now...

Say I have this linear algebra class. A few people have already
contacted me and offered assistance. Do I feel obligated to share
profit with them? Obviously yes, but what about people who help
out at the last minute? Do I break that profit into "shares" that are
given out to whoever helps?

This all seems too complicated - I think in practice the linear algebra
class is going to (like Gian suggested) have a "Suggested Donation"
of some amount of money, and not collect any money myself, because
I feel pretty strongly about free education.

In general though I'm concerned that if NB start having for-profit classes
all the time it's going to change the nature of the space in a negative way.
Are there any 501c3's out there that have this sort of model functioning
that could be used as an example?

  mike



On Fri, Jul 9, 2010 at 5:31 PM, Mike Schachter <mike at mindmech.com> wrote:

> And another thing - if someone is holding a for-profit class, what is to
> stop anyone from sitting there and listening in? If someone at noisebridge
> told me to leave a class because I didn't pay, I'd tell them to fuck off.
>
>   mike
>
>
>
>
>
> On Fri, Jul 9, 2010 at 5:26 PM, Mike Schachter <mike at mindmech.com> wrote:
>
>> I think there's various concerns:
>>
>> 1) Would someone paying money for a class expect priority over
>> someone who is just sitting around at NB? What about when a for-
>> profit meetup conflicts with a regular NB meetup? I would imagine
>> this situation to be more tense than usual because of profit concerns,
>> especially given the unpredictable nature of the space.
>>
>> 2) Any for-profit class is going to take up space at NB and thus
>> money should go to NB. Profit sharing with NB should be mandated
>> (if such a rule is even possible). I would suggest 75% to NB, 25% to
>> the person giving the class.
>>
>> 3) There should be a cap on the per-person/hour charge on the class,
>> Gian mentioned $25/hour. I think that's even alot. It rules out low
>> income people and maybe not in the spirit of a community-serving 501c3.
>>
>> 4) There should be complete transparency regarding where the money
>> comes from and goes.
>>
>> I was hoping to give a linear algebra class at NB some time in the near
>> future (like within the next 3 months), in the form of a fund raiser where
>> most of the profit goes to NB - so whatever comes of this discussion is
>> pretty relevant!
>>
>>     mike
>>
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Jul 9, 2010 at 4:25 PM, Gian Pablo Villamil <gian.pablo at gmail.com
>> > wrote:
>>
>>> Philosophically, I don't think charging for classes is a problem at all.
>>>
>>> At NYC Resistor it was usual to charge anywhere up to $25/hour per
>>> student, and classes still filled up. Revenue was shared 50/50 with
>>> the space.
>>>
>>> Would it be worthwhile to do a kind of $10 recommended donation type
>>> deal?
>>>
>>> Of course, NYCR was not a 501(c), so perhaps things are different.
>>>
>>> On Fri, Jul 9, 2010 at 2:39 PM, Michael Shiloh
>>> <michaelshiloh1010 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> > Wow! What a great class. I was as exhausted but energized from so many
>>> > interesting and (apparently) eager students. We covered basic
>>> > electronics, basic programming, and basic Arduino in about 2 hours. I
>>> > think we're all eager to do more advanced exercises at the next
>>> meeting.
>>> >
>>> > There seems to be interest in doing this weekly. I'm certainly up for
>>> > this, but have to balance this against the other responsibilities in my
>>> > life.
>>> >
>>> > I have an idea. If I can make a bit of money doing this I can do one
>>> > less money earning activity, and thus free up the time to do the
>>> Arduino
>>> > class.
>>> >
>>> > If so, I'm thinking of something pretty small, like perhaps $5-$10
>>> > sliding scale, with no one turned away for lack of funds.
>>> >
>>> > Questions:
>>> >
>>> > (1) Is it permissible to request money at NB?
>>> > (2) Would this policy cause you not to come?
>>> > (3) Would you be interested in an Arduino companion kit of components,
>>> > solderless breadboard, and wire sold pretty much at cost? I'm thinking
>>> > of things like LEDs, switches, light sensors, potentiometers, and a
>>> > motor. I think we could do this for about $20.
>>> > _______________________________________________
>>> > Noisebridge-discuss mailing list
>>> > Noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
>>> > https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/noisebridge-discuss
>>> >
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Noisebridge-discuss mailing list
>>> Noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
>>> https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/noisebridge-discuss
>>>
>>
>>
>
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