Status Checkins every first week of the month by appointment
Happy Hour and Group Check in every first Thursday of the month
Office hours every Tuesday and Thursday by appointment
Peer Workshops every third Friday
Demo Showcase TBD
Final Showcase June 2018
INCUBATOR MEMBER MANUAL
Welcome to Gray Area! We are pleased to have you join our Fall Incubator Cohort! This page will provide you with the incubator operations and best practices for members.
Let's get a few things out of the way, first!
Please make sure you've joined out Slack Team. We will be communicating in the #incubator_members channel. You can use this platform throughout the term to keep track of important dates, see what events are taking place & see room availability.
SCHEDULE
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
STATUS CHECK INs
The first week of every month there will be individual meetings to discuss the current status of your project and your roadmap to development.
At status updates incubator members will present their work in progress. This can be provided in a simple .pdf or slideshow format.
Key deliverables include:
➢Concept briefings
➢Mood-boarding and research assets
➢Budget and Material lists
➢Scope and Project Timeline
➢Development Documentation Assets
➢Supporting Diagram
➢Prototypes / Iterations
At status updates staff will help assess the development of your project to better assist your project goals.
SKILL SHARE
To make the most of the collaborative environment, consider Proposing a Workshop! Share your skills, knowledge, and techniques with your community.
HAPPY HOUR & GROUP CHECK IN
Every first Friday of the month we will host a happy hour in the lobby of Gray Area. Happy hour is an opportunity to exploit the collaborative nature of our community and discuss new projects and opportunities.
We encourage you to use this time to use the space to demo your works. If you would like to address a specific topic during a Group Check In, please notify a staff member at least one day in advanced.
DEMO SHOWCASE
The Demo Showcase is a public event where members present proposal decks and/or prototypes of their projects for 5 minutes. Each presentation is followed by 5 minutes of audience Q&A.
FINAL SHOWCASE
The final showcase is an opt-in public exhibition of the projects where members will be on hand to answer questions and talk with guests.
*Members are expected to install and de-install their exhibit.
COMMUNICATION
We will use Slack for all internal communication between Incubator Members and Staff.
All conversations will be kept in the incubator slack channel #incubator_members
Mentors can be reached through individual slack discussions.
USE OF FACILITIES
FACILITY POLICY AND PROCEDURE
Keep common areas clean and tidy. This includes your workspace, kitchenette, and rubbish areas.
Clean your dishes immediately after use, do NOT leave any unwashed dishes in the sink.
Failure to follow specific guidelines and procedures may result in the user being held responsible for replacement cost and labor cost of damaged Gray Area property.
Repeated warnings may result in suspension of membership.
Be mindful of your fellow members!
EQUIPMENT
You have access to gray area’s array of tools. Equipment must be checked out.
Please email the Incubator manger to provide you with equipment check out agreement.
Equipment includes:
➢Community tool shed
➢Physical computing hardware
➢Infrared controllers senors
➢Projectors and other a/v equipment
ROOM RESERVATIONS
Rooms must be reserved to guarantee access to them. This is a shared space, so it is important to communicate with members and staff. Reservations will be made through Google Calendar. Instructions on how to make these reservations will be provided.
CODE OF CONDUCT
PARTICIPATION
Members are expected to:
➢Participate in Group Check Ins (opt-in)
➢Be prepared for individual Check Ins with necessary deliverables and questions (opt-in)
➢Articulate needs and concerns with Gray Area staff and peers
➢Provide constructive criticism to fellow members
➢Show progress and growth in development of work
➢Commitment to fostering community growth
Members who do not participate in accordance to the Incubator Program may have the opportunity to show in the Final Showcase revoked.
DEVELOPMENT PROCESS
To ensure a breadth and depth to the projects generated at Gray Area we ask that all members produce exploratory artifacts during the generation and iteration stages of their project.
*These can include but are not limited to:
➢sketches
➢notes
➢iterative studies
➢models
➢diagrams
CRITIQUE GUIDELINES
Critiques are an important part of the creative process. It is an opportunity to get feedback and better understand how your own project is interpreted by a viewer.
Critique etiquette includes:
➢Being on time
➢Being prepared to present using the template provided
➢When presenting, take the opportunity to ask for feedback that you may need or to express concerns and ask for help from the group
➢When giving feedback, listen carefully and be prepared to contribute
➢Always keep criticism constructive. Tell the presenter what you liked and why, what needs clarification, what you didn’t understand, and what may not have worked for you and why
➢As the recipient of constructive criticism, listen before reacting, remember that it is meant to be helpful, say thank you and ask for clarification if you don’t understand
HARRASSMENT
Gray Area is dedicated to providing a respectful, harassment-free community for everyone. We do not tolerate harassment or bullying of any community member in any form. This does not only extend to staff members of Gray Area, but to anyone who chooses to become involved in the larger Gray Area community of artists, developers and integrators through events or interactions.
Harassment includes offensive verbal/electronic comments related to personal characteristics or choices, sexual images or comments in public or online spaces, deliberate intimidation, bullying, stalking, following, harassing photography or recording, sustained disruption of talks, IRC chats, electronic meetings, physical meetings or other events, inappropriate physical contact, or unwelcome sexual attention. Participants asked to stop any harassing or bullying behavior are expected to comply immediately.
If a participant engages in harassing behavior, representatives of the community may take reasonable action they deem appropriate, including warning the offender, expulsion from any Gray Area event, or expulsion from mailing lists, IRC chats, discussion boards and other electronic communications channels to resolve the issue. This may include expulsion from membership in the Gray Area program they are attending.
If you are being harassed, notice that someone else is being harassed, or have any other concerns, please act to intercede or ask for help from any member of the Phone Foundation, IRC chat admins, website admins, or organizers/representatives of any physical events put on under the auspices of Gray Area.
