This episode of the Jukebox Podcast (WP Tavern) brings together three leaders in WordPress education—Destiny Kanno, Anand Upadhyay, and Maciej Pilarski—to explain how multiple initiatives are expanding access to WordPress learning worldwide. The conversation maps three complementary programs, how they differ, how they feed each other, and why they matter for the long-term health of the project.
Who’s involved
– Destiny Kanno: Education Program Manager (Automattic), working with the Make WordPress Community and training teams. She coordinates Campus Connect and facilitator supports.
– Anand Upadhyay: Plugin developer and community organiser (WPVibes), active in Campus Connect and Student Clubs.
– Maciej Pilarski: WordPress contributor and admin for the WordPress Credits Program, helping grow university partnerships and mentorship.
Three pillars of WordPress education
1) WordPress Credits Program (WP Credits)
– What it is: A contribution-based academic program run by the WordPress Foundation that connects higher education students to open source work on make.wordpress.org teams.
– Structure: Students can enroll in 50-hour or 150-hour courses (typically semester-long). They are onboarded to open source practices, choose a contribution area, work with a vetted mentor, and publish a final report or post summarising their work.
– Outcomes: Students receive an official certificate from the WordPress Foundation (signed by leadership) and a badge on their wordpress.org profile. Contributions are recorded on their profiles, creating a public portfolio useful for future employers.
– Reach: Started as a pilot at the University of Pisa and has grown rapidly; current enrollment figures include about 450 students globally and 75 graduates so far. New institutional partners include universities across regions, with recent growth into Africa (Uganda) and elsewhere.
2) WordPress Campus Connect
– What it is: An official WordPress event series aimed at meeting students where they are—schools, colleges, libraries, vocational programs—bringing accessible, hands-on WordPress learning to campuses of all kinds.
– Format: Flexible: one-day or multi-day workshops, occasional repeat visits, or ad hoc sessions. Target audience ranges from elementary-school-aged learners (with supervision) through to university students—basically anyone who can access the web safely.
– Purpose: Lower the barrier to entry, demonstrate WordPress use beyond blogging (design, marketing, business, development), and create case studies that help campus staff and organisers advocate for future events.
– Impact: Since becoming official in May 2025, Campus Connect reported 42 completed events, 71 participating institutions, and over 5,500 students reached. Most attendees leave having built a website or received a certificate of participation signed by the WordPress Foundation.
3) Student Clubs
– What it is: Peer-led, in-campus groups that keep momentum after Campus Connect events. Student Clubs are similar to university meetups—organised by students for students, typically meeting monthly or bi-monthly.
– Activities: Workshops, quizzes, speed-builds, site-building challenges and peer teaching. Clubs help students practice skills, develop leadership and presentation confidence, and connect with mentors and community members for deeper learning opportunities.
– Role: Student Clubs provide sustainable, grassroots growth of WordPress use on campus and create a pipeline for future contributors and professionals.
How the three initiatives work together
– They’re complementary, not competing. Campus Connect often sparks interest that leads to Student Clubs; successful Campus Connects and Student Club activity can lead institutions to formalise involvement through the Credits Program. Credits can also introduce students to the community, which leads to events and clubs.
– Repeat events and institutional ownership are signs of sustainability. When a campus asks for Campus Connect again, or faculty begin organising and mentoring their own clubs, that indicates lasting impact beyond a single workshop.
Scaling and support
– Facilitator resources: To lower barriers for organisers and build confidence among novice presenters, Destiny is developing a Meetup Activity Library—ready-made activity kits that include facilitation guides, slide decks, and step-by-step hands-on exercises. These materials help volunteers and students host sessions without inventing everything from scratch.
– Facilitator Training Program: Training more facilitators increases capacity so programs can grow without overwhelming organisers or mentors.
– Visibility and celebration: The Education Buzz Report and other communications aim to share wins, showcase students, and help organisers amplify success stories—important for attracting more participants and institutional support.
Measuring success
– Short-term metrics (events, attendees) are useful, but the teams emphasise longer-term impact: sustained campus activity, students moving into contribution, and the cultural shift of education becoming part of WordPress’s ongoing community-building.
– Examples of meaningful signals: repeat bookings, faculty adopting the program, students requesting follow-up activities during academic breaks, students attending flagship events like WordCamps, and students eventually contributing to WordPress projects.
Trends and future directions
– Growing institutional buy-in: From pilot programs to multiple universities and the first African partner, institutional participation has accelerated.
– Education at flagship events: Contributor tables and dedicated education tracks are appearing at WordCamps (e.g., WordCamp Europe), showcasing students and inviting more visibility.
– Relevance and adaptation: Initiatives are evolving with the times—new credentials (like AI-related learning pathways) are being explored, keeping WordPress relevant for today’s learners and technologies.
Why this matters
– Long-term sustainability: Bringing younger people into the project creates the next generation of users, contributors, and leaders. Without sustained education and outreach, community participation and the open source ecosystem risk aging without renewal.
– Personal impact: For many organisers, improving access to learning is deeply personal—easing the path for students who might otherwise struggle and unlocking career and creative opportunities.
How to get involved
– If you want to start a Campus Connect, help run a Student Club, mentor Credits students, or use facilitator kits, look for links and resources in the episode show notes at wptavern.com/podcast and the WP Tavern article accompanying this episode. The programs emphasise low barriers to entry and welcome volunteers, faculty partners, and community organisers worldwide.
In short, WordPress education is expanding at multiple levels—formal credit-bearing university programs, flexible campus events, and student-led clubs. Together they form an ecosystem that introduces new users to WordPress, nurtures skills, and builds a sustainable contributor pipeline for the future.
