WordCamp Nashville May 3 features WordPress sessions for beginners, developers, site owners

Kate O’Neill, speaker, consultant and entrepreneur, to deliver keynote talk

About 300 people who use WordPress – ranging from true beginners to advanced developers – will converge on Music City May 3 for the annual WordCamp Nashville 2014.

Twordcamp-header1.pnghe daylong learning and networking event celebrates WordPress itself and the large global support community around it. WordPress is free and open-source publishing software admired by fans for its ease of use, flexibility and ability to customize. The platform drives everything from websites of major companies such as Sony Music Entertainment, TechCrunch, and BBC America to simple, single-author blogs – and everything in between.

Tickets are $20 and include lunch, a t-shirt and admission to an after-party.

Kate O’Neill, principal of KO Insights, consultant, entrepreneur and former founder of [meta] marketer, will be the keynote speaker. She is a Nashville Technology Council and Evolve Women board member and a visible, passionate advocate for women in leadership and technology as well as the city’s growing technology community.

The keynote session starts at 11 a.m. at Nashville School of Law. This is the third WordCamp Nashville, and past events attracted participants from Georgia, Alabama, Kentucky, Missouri and Indiana in addition to Tennessee.

WordCamp Nashville is part of a much bigger picture. WordPress, which powers more than 75 million personal and business sites on the web, has provided a starting point for many new developers, helping fill gaps in the technology talent pipeline. Each year, volunteers in cities across the globe organize WordCamps to share best practices and new approaches, including how to use WordPress in tandem with other programs.

Attendees may choose from three tracks based on skill level but are not locked into any of them. WordCamp Nashville organizers this year added a daylong Q&A and Help Desk available to everyone, regardless of skill level or experience.

Expect a crowd that loves tech, problem solving, entrepreneurship and business. The event is entirely volunteer-run and speakers are not paid. WordCamps are run under the auspices of the WordPress Foundation, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.