Yep. Really.

I’ll write a Slack bot that does whatever you want it to do (within reason) if you make a $5000 tax-deductible donation to a non-profit that I love: ScriptEd.

What is ScriptEd?

ScriptEd is a non-profit that places developers in under-resourced high schools. These developers volunteer their time to teach HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. They have 200 volunteers that serve over 900 students across the Bay Area and New York City.

I’ve been a volunteer teacher with them for three years. Here’s a photo of me with some of my former students at a hackathon:

Why am I doing this?

Because there are a lot of very bright kids that go through life never knowing that they could influence the technology around them. I want to change that. I don’t make a whole lot of money right now so the next best thing I can offer is my talent and my time.

What will the money be used for?

Your tax-deductible donation of $5000 will go towards purchasing 20 Chromebooks that ScriptEd students will use during classes and hackathons.

Have you written a Slack bot before?

Yup. This bot supports slash commands, @ mentions, and DMs. It interacts with a Python based backend and stores data into a Postgres database.

OK. What are the terms and conditions?

1. If I agree to work with you, I’ll need a detailed specification that describes what the bot will do in gory detail. The scope of the bot needs to be within reason for something I would bill $5000 for.
2. Once we agree on the specification, you’ll need to make an upfront donation of $2500 to ScriptEd so that I can confirm you’re serious. I’ll begin development once I’ve confirmed the donation.
3. I’ll write the Slack bot in Python using the Django framework. I’ll deploy it on Heroku. You’ll be responsible for the monthly Heroku charges.
4. I’ll own the code until the bot is complete. Once it’s done and you’ve tested it, I’ll wait for you to make the second $2500 donation. Once I’ve confirmed that, I’ll transfer ownership of the Github repository storing the bot code over to you.
5. I’ll aim to be all done by September 30th a date we can agree on.
6. Software is complex and unexpected things happen. After I’ve shipped the bot, I’ll be available for a month to squash any bugs that crop up.
7. I won’t handle getting the bot approved for submission to the Slack app store. That’ll be on you.

Sounds good. Where do I apply?

Apply here.

I’ll follow up with you if I think there’s a good match.