Author: Steve M

WordCamp is almost here! We’re looking forward to welcoming you for a weekend of WordPress learning, networking and fun.

There is some very important information you should know to get the most out of WordCamp and answer some frequently asked questions. Please take a minute to read this:

Getting To WordCamp – MUST READ

WordCamp Raleigh is in Engineering Building I (EB1) on NC State’s Centennial Campus. This weekend, there is a very large music festival happening close to NC State with 40,000 people attending. Many roads will be blocked off, including roads into NC State Centennial Campus. We have provided a map that shows the route marked in green that you should use to access the venue here.

Please note that traffic will be very heavy throughout Saturday so please give yourself extra time to get to and from WordCamp.

Parking – MUST READ

Due to the music festival being held on Saturday, many of the parking lots will be paid lots ($20) for the festival. We do not know if this is cash only or whether they will take cards. The three parking decks closest to WordCamp are paid lots. We’ve marked these with a red star on the map here.

There are a limited amount of free parking spaces. We’ve marked these in yellow on the map. Some of these lots are shared with students who live on campus so please be aware that free parking will be limited. The free lots are further from the venue which is marked with a red arrow on the map so you will have further to walk. We will put out as many signs and balloons as we can to mark the walking routes to reach the venue.

Please allow extra time to find parking and to walk to the venue. Whilst the weather forecast is good, you may want to be prepared for rain.

Finding WordCamp

Once you arrive at Centennial Campus, make your way to the lawn in the center of the three Engineering Buildings. You will find signs and balloons directing you to Engineering Building I (marked with a red arrow on the map). There is a large entrance hall where you will find registration, coffee, snacks, sponsor booths, and the Happiness Bar.

We’ve marked the walking routes in blue on the map here.

Registration

Registration will open at 8:15am. There will be someone at registration all day on Saturday in case you can’t make it in the morning.

You do not need to bring your ticket. We have a list of attendees and a badge for each attendee that registers prior to 12pm ET on Friday 5th April. Please give your name to the volunteer at registration and they will hand you your badge.

T-Shirts

We will have t-shirts for all those who registered prior to the cut off on Saturday 30th April. Please note that we cannot give you a different size t-shirt at registration, if you need a different size t-shirt then please ask an organizer or volunteer on Sunday to see if there are any spare t-shirts available.

Tracks, Sessions and Workshops

We get a lot of questions about whether you can switch tracks and sessions during the day. The answer is yes. You are free to move about between tracks and sessions as you like. WordCamps are very informal. Rooms will be clearly signed and there will be volunteers on hand to help you find a room.

Refreshments

There will be water, coffee and snacks available during the breaks on both days. You will find these in the main hallway where registration, sponsor booths and the Happiness Bar are located. We will also have donuts for the Donuts and Business Cards networking session on Sunday morning at 9:30am.

Lunch on Saturday

We provide a hot lunch included with your ticket. We are excited that this year lunch will again be at On The Oval which is a large cafeteria area on Centennial Campus across the lawn from Engineering Building 1. The menu will include options for both meat-lovers, vegans, vegetarians and those who are Gluten-free. NC State staff and WordCamp volunteers will be on hand to answer any questions.

WIFI and Power Outlets

NC State provides an NCSU Guest network with open access. No password is required to connect. If you have a problem connecting, please contact an organizer or volunteer.

As this is a University, you can expect lots of power outlets in each of the rooms for charging your phones, tablets and laptops.

Happiness Bar

If you’ve never attended a WordCamp before, or never heard of the Happiness Bar, then this is a table where you will find volunteers willing to answer your questions about WordPress. Whether it’s a technical issue or non-technical, someone will be willing to help.

We’ve asked all of our speakers to spend a little time at the Happiness Bar after their session to answer your questions. The Happiness Bar will be located in the main hallway where registration, sponsor booths and refreshments are located.

Social Media

We encourage you to Tweet and post on your social media. Please use the hashtag #WCRaleigh. You can find us on Twitter and on Facebook.

After-Party

This year the After-Party will be held on Saturday night from 7pm to 9pm at The Raleigh Beer Garden which is located in downtown Raleigh. Admission to the After-Party is included for all WordCamp Raleigh attendees. While this is a venue that does serve alcohol, having a drink is not a requirement to attend! We will be providing complimentary drinks, including soft drinks, to those that wish to indulge. This is a great opportunity to relax, meet the speakers and sponsors, and network with fellow WordPress enthusiasts.

The Raleigh Beer Garden has two floors, a roof top patio, and a large outdoor area to the rear. It is located at 614 Glenwood Ave in Raleigh, about 10 minutes from NC State. You can find their website here.

Media Policy

All sessions are video recorded by a professional video company and will be uploaded to WordPress.tv at a later date. There will also be a couple of photographers taking photos for use on this website, the WordCamp Central website and on our social media channels. By attending this event, attendees agree to be photographed/videoed and that the images/content collected may be used to promote WordCamp.

Code of Conduct

The WordPress Foundation has a Code of Conduct that EVERYONE at WordCamp must follow so that the experience can be welcoming and non-threatening to all participants. The Foundation takes great pride that those who are associated with WordPress are role models to admire and respect. If you DO see something unbecoming of the Foundation’s expectations, please notify an organizer or volunteer IMMEDIATELY.

You can find the Code of Conduct here.

WordCamp Volunteers and Organizers

WordCamp couldn’t happen without a lot of hard work from volunteers. This is not a for-profit conference, it is volunteer organized, volunteer run by people just like you who wanted to give a little back to the WordPress community. You’ll find the organizers and volunteers around the main hallway as well as volunteers in each room. Please say hello and thank them for their efforts.

Whilst we do our utmost to provide a great experience, we acknowledge that things can sometimes go wrong. We are not professional event organizers but each one of the organizers and volunteers works very hard to make sure you have a great experience. If you do encounter a problem please let us know either by finding an organizer or via the contact form here.

We look forward to seeing you!

The WordCamp Raleigh Team

With only a week to go until the 10th WordCamp Raleigh, we thought we’d share with you some latest news and updates.

IMPORTANT: Venue access and parking

The venue for WordCamp Raleigh is the Engineering Buildings on Centennial Campus at NC State University. Registration is in the atrium of Engineering Building 1 and sessions are in lecture halls in both Engineering Building 1 and 2. We have a map here.

Access to the venue and parking are heavily restricted this year due to a very large event happening at Dix Park. Please make sure you review the important information on our Location page on how to get to the venue and where to park.

Sessions and Workshops

Your ticket gives you access to any session on any track as well as the workshops. You don’t have to stick with one track and you can move freely between any track and any session.

We do ask that if you want to attend any of the workshops that you please register your interest here.

After Party

We are holding an After Party for WordCamp attendees at 7pm on Saturday 6th. The venue is The Raleigh Beer Garden at 614 Glenwood Avenue in Raleigh. There is parking close by in a parking garage on Tucker Street.

Whilst this is a bar, it is a large location with a big outdoor area. It’s perfect for networking with your fellow WordCamp attendees, speakers, sponsors and organizers. You don’t have to drink to attend, it’s open and inclusive to all so you can relax after a full day of learning about WordPress.

KidsCamp

This is the very first KidsCamp at WordCamp Raleigh and we’re excited to be able to bring WordPress to kids between the ages of 7 and 17. If you’re attending KidsCamp or are interested in attending with your kids then please review the information on our KidsCamp page and our FAQs page.

Parents who want to attend both KidsCamp and WordCamp will need to purchase a KidsCamp ticket for their child and a WordCamp ticket for themselves.

Lunch on Saturday

We’re pleased to be partnering again with NC State University to provide lunch on Saturday. Lunch is included in your WordCamp ticket, lunch for children is included in their KidsCamp ticket (parents who want lunch will need to purchase a WordCamp ticket).

Lunch is at On The Oval located across the lawn from the Engineering Buildings. On The Oval is a campus dining facility which will have stations open for a variety of food, including:

• A BBQ station
• A burger bar
• A taco bar
• A panini bar
• A salad bar

Each station will have a variety of choices including gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan options. There will be staff and volunteers on hand to answer your questions and direct you to the various stations.

We’ll have more information for you next week and all attendees can expect to receive an email next week with important information to help you enjoy WordCamp.

We’re excited to announce that this year, to celebrate our tenth anniversary, we’ll be holding our first ever KidsCamp!

KidsCamp is a special one-day event for parents who want to introduce their children to WordPress. KidsCamp is for children between the ages 7 to 17 and is suitable for children who are new to WordPress or those who are more advanced.

Tickets for KidsCamp are $20 per child for the one day. The ticket includes a t-shirt and lunch for each child.

Find out more on our KidsCamp page here.

If you’re traveling to WordCamp Raleigh and need overnight accommodation, then we have negotiated a group rate with two local hotels.

These rates are for a limited number of rooms and are only available for a short amount of time.

Please visit our Hotel Group Rates page for details and to book online or by phone.

Need a ticket for WordCamp, purchase online on our Tickets page.

We are pleased to announce that tickets for WordCamp Raleigh 2019 are now on sale! This is our tenth anniversary and we expect to sell out again this year, so you’ll want to get your ticket early.

You can purchase a ticket on our Tickets page here.

Tickets are only $35 which covers all the tracks and sessions, lunch on Saturday, snacks and coffee throughout both days, a commemorative t-shirt and swag.

We’re also pleased to announce the first set of speakers and sessions. We had a great response to our call for speakers. This year we will have 35 speakers over 4 tracks with sessions for everybody from beginners, to freelancers, to business owners, to developers.

We’ll publish the second and final batch of speakers and sessions next week and will work on getting a schedule published as quickly as possible.

We hope you’ll come join us and over 400 WordPress enthusiasts to celebrate the tenth anniversary of WordCamp Raleigh.

With WordCamp Raleigh 2019 in just less than 3 months, we thought you might like to hear how the planning is going.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of WordCamp Raleigh and we’re planning to make this the biggest and best yet in celebration of our 10th birthday.

The organizers have been working to secure a location, vendors, sponsors and speakers. Here’s an update on our progress:

• DATES: The dates for WordCamp Raleigh 2019 are Saturday 6th April and Sunday 7th April. Like previous years, Saturday will be a full day – 9am to 5pm, and Sunday will be a half day – 9am to 1pm(ish).
• VENUE: The venue has been secured and we are very pleased to be returning to North Carolina State University Centennial Campus again this year. NCSU have been fantastic hosts and the venue is perfect for an educational conference. You can find location and venue information on our site here.
• SPEAKERS: We’re currently in the process of selecting speakers. Speaker submissions officially closed this week and we’ve had a great response. We’ll be notifying and confirming speakers over the coming week and you’ll start to see announcements on who’s speaking in the next few weeks.
• SCHEDULE: The schedule will be similar to previous years with sessions on a range of topics that will be educational, whether you’re a complete beginner, a business owner, a website owner or blogger, or a developer. We’ll announce the schedule once all the speakers have been confirmed.
• TICKETS: Tickets will be available to purchase on our website very soon. We’ll announce this on the website and via our Facebook page and Twitter. Ticket prices will be the same as previous years – $35.00 for both days including lunch on Saturday, refreshments, t-shirt and after-party!
• SPONSORS: We’re actively looking for sponsors to support WordCamp so that we can provide the best experience to all attendees. If you’re interested in sponsoring, please check out our sponsorship levels here.

Look out for more announcements over the coming weeks on our website, via our Facebook page, or via Twitter. We look forward to seeing you at our 10th anniversary of WordCamp Raleigh!