Hacktoberfest Hack Day at Grambling State University

A free, one-day hackathon where you build something real with open-source AI. Hosted by ColorStack Grambling in partnership with Major League Hacking (MLH)

No experience needed. Whether it’s your first hackathon or your fiftieth, there’s a seat for you. The day is open to every major and skill level. Come alone or with friends. If you don’t have a team, we’ll help you find one

WHEN AND WHERE

Friday, October 30, 2026, 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM Central

JTS building, STC Lab, Grambling State University

WHAT YOU GET

Free lunch and drinks

Free swag from MLH

Mentors in the room all afternoon

A chance to win prizes, including an MLH DEV Badge and belt bags for the winning team

A project for your portfolio

WHAT YOU’LL BUILD

Build an original project that uses open-source or open-weight AI as an important part of how it works. Ideas: an agent skill, a project on an open-weight language model, or a model harness. Your code must be in a public GitHub repository with an open-source license, like MIT or Apache-2.0.

Want an extra challenge? Try the optional Snowflake track: use Snowflake CoCo with a freely accessible Snowflake dataset and open-source AI.

SCHEDULE (CENTRAL TIME)

12:00 to 12:45 PM: Check-in and lunch

12:45 to 1:15 PM: Opening session and workshop

1:15 to 4:00 PM: Hacking time (team-finding at the start for anyone without a team)

4:00 to 4:30 PM: Project submissions

4:30 to 5:30 PM: Demos and judging

5:30 to 6:00 PM: Awards and closing

HOW TO JOIN

Register on OrganizerHQ: 

Arrive by 12:00 PM, check in, and grab lunch

Bring a laptop and a charger

• 1. Creativity and Originality
  Is the idea fresh and your own? We reward new angles on a problem, not copies of tutorials. A simple idea done in a thoughtful way counts.
• 2. Technical Execution
  Does it work? We look at how well the project is built, whether it runs when demoed, and whether the code in your repository is organized and clear.
• 3. Use of Open-Source AI
  How central is open-source or open-weight AI to your project? It should be an important part of how it works, not an add-on. Public GitHub repo with an open-source license required.
• 4. Presentation and Clarity
  Can you explain what you built and why? Your demo, README and description should make it clear to someone who has never seen the project.