Sponsorship Request – Smart Global Hackathon (MIT, India & 8+ Global Venues) Dear GitHub Team

[shriyashsoni]

Select Topic Area

Question

Body

Dear GitHub Education Team,

I’m Shriyash Soni, founder of Apna Coding – a global tech community of 10,000+ students across 10+ countries. We’re on a mission to connect students and developers through impactful global opportunities.

We're organizing the Smart Global Hackathon (SGH) – a multi-country event hosted across:

MIT, USA

Pune, India

8+ international locations

With over 5,000 expected participants, this hackathon focuses on AI, open-source, sustainability, and future-tech innovations.

We would be honored to have GitHub as a community partner or sponsor.

We’re Requesting:
GitHub swag (stickers, shirts, etc.) for global participants

GitHub Education benefits for student developers

Possible speaker/mentor involvement from GitHub

Feature on GitHub Education or Community channels

Your support will directly inspire and empower thousands of budding developers across the world.

Thank you for considering our request. We’re open to discussing this further at your convenience.

Warm regards,
Shriyash Soni
Founder, Apna Coding
📧 apnacoding.tech@gmail.com
🌐 https://apnacoding.tech/
📍 MIT USA | Pune India | 8+ Countrie

[shinybrightstar]

Hi @shriyashsoni,

Thank you for your inquiry. GitHub Education is currently in the process of evaluating resource distribution processes for requests of this kind. While we may be unable to provide a direct donation, we want you to be aware of other resources GitHub Education makes available to students throughout their learning journey.

• The Student Developer Pack is a hub where GitHub verified students can access benefits exclusive to them. We provide enhanced (and free) uses of industry-leading tools and products so those learning can do so using the same resources that professionals use. Once verified here, students have access to the benefits below. Having trouble with the application? Take a look at this FAQ for help (note, you must be at least 13 in order to have a GitHub account and not all Student Developer Pack offers are available to learners under 18).
  • GitHub verified students receive:
    • Free use of GitHub Copilot Pro as long as you’re a student ($10/mo)
    • Waived fee on the GitHub Foundations Certification exam ($99)
    • A Pro badge on your GitHub Profile
    • Over $100k worth of free use of key tech tools by companies including offers from: 1Password, MongoDB, DataDog, DigitalOcean Azure, Notion, JetBrains, Appwrite and more. Visit the Student Developer Pack page for a full list.
• We partner with Major League Hacking (MLH), the official student hackathon league. If you're not already a member (it's free!), to organize a hackathon with support from GitHub: https://mlh.io/event-membership. MLH also provides GitHub collateral and swag to all MLH Member Events. Please feel free to explore this guide to sponsorships by MLH for tips on how you may find funding partners.
• We also partner with Hack Club, a high school based coding club organization. If you're not already a member (it's free!), you can learn more here to see what resources are available.

Please stay on the lookout for updates and additional resources as they are made available. We will communicate this to our community via the email newsletter and Community Discussions.

Best wishes with your event and all endeavors!

[shriyashsoni]

Hi GitHub Education Team,

Thank you so much for your detailed response and for sharing all the amazing resources available through GitHub Education, MLH, and Hack Club.

I truly appreciate your commitment to supporting student developers around the world.

I’d also love to explore the possibility of a long-term partnership between GitHub Education and our global tech community, Apna Coding (https://apnacoding.tech/). We’re currently organizing the Smart Global Hackathon, happening across 10+ countries including the USA, UK, and India – aimed at empowering student developers, coders, and innovators worldwide.

We would be honored to collaborate with GitHub Education – either as an official partner, resource supporter, or event amplifier. I believe our mission to make global coding opportunities accessible aligns perfectly with GitHub’s vision.

Please let me know if we can explore this partnership opportunity further. I’d be happy to share more details and collaborate in any way possible.

Thanks again for your support and for all that you do for the developer community!

Warm regards,
Shriyash Soni
Founder, Apna Coding
🌐 apnacoding.tech
📧 apnacoding.tech@gmail.com

[shriyashsoni]

Hi GitHub Education Team, Thank you so much for your detailed response and for sharing all the amazing resources available through GitHub Education, MLH, and Hack Club. I truly appreciate your commitment to supporting student developers around the world. I’d also love to explore the possibility of a *long-term partnership* between *GitHub Education* and our global tech community, *Apna Coding* ( https://apnacoding.tech). We’re currently organizing the *Smart Global Hackathon*, happening across 10+ countries including the USA, UK, and India – aimed at empowering student developers, coders, and innovators worldwide. We would be honored to collaborate with GitHub Education – either as an official partner, resource supporter, or event amplifier. I believe our mission to make global coding opportunities accessible aligns perfectly with GitHub’s vision. Please let me know if we can explore this partnership opportunity further. I’d be happy to share more details and collaborate in any way possible. Thanks again for your support and for all that you do for the developer community! Warm regards, *Shriyash Soni* Founder, Apna Coding 🌐 apnacoding.tech 📧 ***@***.***

…

On Tue, 15 Apr 2025 at 21:51, Shiny Bright Star ***@***.***> wrote: Hi @shriyashsoni <https://github.com/shriyashsoni>, Thank you for your inquiry. GitHub Education is currently in the process of evaluating resource distribution processes for requests of this kind. While we may be unable to provide a direct donation, we want you to be aware of other resources GitHub Education makes available to students throughout their learning journey. - The Student Developer Pack is a hub where GitHub verified students can access benefits exclusive to them. We provide enhanced (and free) uses of industry-leading tools and products so those learning can do so using the same resources that professionals use. Once verified here <https://education.github.com/discount_requests/application>, students have access to the benefits below. Having trouble with the application? Take a look at this FAQ for help <#111352> (note, you must be at least 13 in order to have a GitHub account and not all Student Developer Pack offers are available to learners under 18). - GitHub verified students receive: - Free use of GitHub Copilot Pro <https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/managing-copilot/managing-copilot-as-an-individual-subscriber/managing-your-github-copilot-pro-subscription/getting-free-access-to-copilot-pro-as-a-student-teacher-or-maintainer> as long as you’re a student ($10/mo) - Waived fee on the GitHub Foundations Certification exam ($99) - A Pro badge on your GitHub Profile - Over $100k worth of free use of key tech tools by companies including offers from: 1Password, MongoDB, DataDog, DigitalOcean Azure, Notion, JetBrains, Appwrite and more. Visit the Student Developer Pack page <https://education.github.com/pack/offers> for a full list. - We partner with Major League Hacking (MLH), the official student hackathon league. If you're not already a member (it's free!), to organize a hackathon with support from GitHub: https://mlh.io/event-membership. MLH also provides GitHub collateral and swag to all MLH Member Events. Please feel free to explore this guide to sponsorships <https://guide.mlh.io/general-information/getting-sponsorship> by MLH for tips on how you may find funding partners. - We also partner with Hack Club, a high school based coding club organization. If you're not already a member (it's free!), you can learn more here <https://hackclub.com/> to see what resources are available. Please stay on the lookout for updates and additional resources as they are made available. We will communicate this to our community via the email newsletter and Community Discussions <https://github.com/orgs/community/discussions/categories/github-education> . Best wishes with your event and all endeavors! — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#156497 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/BBD6Z44Y5TQ47ZN4ZI6P2FD2ZUWXRAVCNFSM6AAAAAB3AJOD2SVHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43URDJONRXK43TNFXW4Q3PNVWWK3TUHMYTEOBUGQZTIMI> . You are receiving this because you were mentioned.Message ID: ***@***.***>