We’re excited to announce that MSU now has an institutional membership to the Carpentries, a non-profit organization whose mission is to teach foundational coding and data science skills to researchers. With this announcement, we’d like to share a call for Carpentries instructors and share plans for a Library Carpentry workshop.
The membership is made possible through an RFN partnership between the Libraries, MSU IT, and the Institute for Cyber-Enabled Research (ICER). The last time that MSU had an institutional membership in the Carpentries was 2019.
MSU currently has a silver membership, with benefits that include:
- 5 seats for Carpentries instructor trainings
- 40% discount on additional seats in instructor training
- 2 centrally organized workshops from Carpentries
For the past two years, ICER and the Library have offered two well-received Software Carpentries workshops, first on Python and then on R. Based on their success, we seek to more directly tie our work to the RFN community and expand the capacity and offerings for offering additional workshops from the Carpentries curricula.
The Carpentries uses a pedagogical approach to teaching coding that emphasizes inclusivity, hands-on experience, and support. To host a Carpentries workshop requires at least one certified instructor who has completed the Carpentries training program. The goal for this membership is to increase the number of Carpentries-certified instructors at MSU.
Apply to Become a Carpentries Instructor
We are seeking applicants who are interested in going through the Carpentries training program. Those who attend the training program through this membership are expected to contribute to a Carpentries workshop at MSU within a year of completing their training. This is a $1500 professional development opportunity that is available at no cost to selected applicants as part of the MSU Carpentries membership.
Timeline
- Call for proposal opens: September 8, 2025
- Call for proposals closes: September 30, 2025
- Participants notified of selection: October 3, 2025
- Participants attend Carpentries Instructor Training: Before January 2026
- Once certified, contribute to:
- Software Carpentry Workshop (Spring Break)
- TBD Carpentries Workshop (TBD May or June)
Selection
Applicants will be evaluated and selected based on the following criteria:
- How becoming a Certified Carpentries Instructor will support your academic/career development
- How you can contribute to MSU’s community of coding and data science instruction
- Commitment to complete training before January 2026
- Commitment to teach a workshop at MSU in the spring or summer of 2026
- Previous experience with content taught at Carpentries workshops
- Whether you have contributed to prior Carpentries work at MSU
- Your department (while some seats will be given priority to units funding MSU’s institutional membership, we encourage a wide range of applicants!)
Those who are not selected may still be able to use professional development funds and take advantage of our 40% discount on instructor training.
Save the Date: Library Carpentry Workshop in November
We are also beginning to plan our first centrally organized workshop. It will draw from the Library Carpentry curriculum and focus on Tidy Data, the Command Line, and Git. This curriculum is designed for library workers and information-related roles but will be relevant to anyone working on collections of digital materials or data.
- Dates and times: November 10-13, 2025, 1-5pm
- Delivered via Zoom
- Registration open to MSU affiliates and the broader community
Image courtesy Unsplash / New York Public Library.
