What is Slack and how will we use it? Slack is the platform through which you will collaborate with your cohort leader, cohort, and design team group throughout the Spark Lab experience. You can discuss relevant topics and some of the pre-Lab artifacts from the resource hub, share other resources you find with each other, and get to know your fellow Spark Lab participants.  It is also where staff can communicate announcements and other group-wide updates. While you should refer to this website for all resources and information, staff will be using slack to send you reminders and flag any new content for you to check out on the website.

How to use Slack: TFA’s Spark Lab has its own Slack workspace. Click here to join the Spark Lab Slack Workspace. 

• Within the workspace, work happens in channels. You can create channels based on teams, projects, or interests. We will also have an #announcements channel and an #introductions channel. 
• Throughout the Lab experience, each cohort will have their own Slack channel, as will sub-team design group. This provides a streamlined platform for project members to discuss the work and share files. 
• You can also search for messages and files that have been sent previously. 
• On Slack, you’re able to send direct messages and group direct messages, which are best for ad-hoc conversations that don't require an entire channel to weigh in. Learn more about DMs and Group DMs.
• Lastly, you can use the @mention feature to tag and notify certain group members right away. 

Getting ready to use Slack: Before the start of TFA’s Spark Lab, you’ll want to download the desktop app and enable notifications. Follow these instructions to download the app to your laptop. Click here for guidance on setting up notifications. We recommend getting push notifications for the following:

• All posts in the #announcements channel

• All DMs

• All @mentions

Next steps:

• After joining at the link above, download the Slack app for your desktop (and your phone if you would like both!) and set up push notifications.
• Add a picture to your profile.
• Join the #announcements and #introductions channel.
• Try it out! Introduce yourself via the #introductions channel following the prompts Spark Lab staff have included.

Still feeling unsure about Slack? Tour the Slack App using Slack’s tutorial.