[Noisebridge-discuss] Charging for classes at Noisebridge

[Josh Myer]

On Fri, Jul 16, 2010 at 12:25 PM, Albert Sweigart <asweigart at gmail.com>wrote:

> I'm for for-pay classes at Noisebridge where they are to get people
> invested in the close and/or cover the classes expenses. Though I like
> and encourage free and open workshops, I also support (for lack of a
> better word) more commercial classes at Noisebridge (though in that
> case Noisebridge should be getting money for providing a venue.)
>
> Either way, I think this is something that the secretary should
> coordinate and make decisions on.
>
>
I agree with you that *all* classes should cover the cost of their
consumables somehow, and ideally donate more.  We should make some
suggestions about this, and make sure people understand the need.  If we as
class organizers don't cover the costs, Noisebridge becomes unsustainable.
 That said, a for-pay class is no different than any other event in the
space, and follows the same one rule: be excellent.  This includes not being
a drain on NB resources, nor feeling entitled to resources any more than any
workshop or class is.  Our community is smart enough to appreciate and avoid
the tragedy of the commons, but we may need to remind people of that.

I strongly disagree that making requirements for classes is the secretary's
purview.  The issue of whether or not to regulate what happens in the space
is clearly a consensus item, as it's not (to my knowledge) in the bylaws to
regulate, it would affect the space as a whole, and would affect the
finances of the organization.

I also believe that regulating it preemptively is solving a problem we don't
have yet, so we should hold off on that.  Moreover, this is a social
problem, and I would remind those of us who were around for the epic "How do
we kick people out?" meetings at 83C remember how difficult it was to design
rules to regulate social norms.  It's far better that we continue to
regulate the norms the way we have been: discuss what we believe them to be,
set expectations with each other, and then make it clear to individuals that
they have the power to step in when situations warrant.  This model has
served us pretty well for the past year and a half, though all sorts of
situations a set of rules would have been hard-pressed to capture.

The one for-pay class we've had at Noisebridge was clearly a net-win for the
space, entirely on the instructor's (my) own recognizance.  It's quite
reasonable to believe anyone serious enough to organize and run a for-pay
class at the space will be similarly responsible.  If they're not, there are
plenty of opportunities for people to have a chat with them, understand the
overall situation, and then bring it up to the membership for action if it's
warranted.  We're going to have to go through that process whether or not we
make rules, and anything the rules would enumerate are already covered by
the fuzzy judgements people would have.
-- 
Josh Myer 650.248.3796
josh at joshisanerd.com
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