Wikipedia:Online Ambassadors/Apply/Steven Zhang

The following discussion is preserved as an archive of a successful Online Ambassador application.

Full support. Welcome to the Online Ambassador Team!--Best regards, Cind.amuse (Cindy) 19:58, 2 November 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Steven Zhang

Steven Zhang (talk · contribs)

Why do you want to be a Wikipedia Ambassador?
I'd like to help students and newer users understand Wikipedia and how it works better. Many schools have IP's that have used WP for vandalism purposes without understanding our true purpose, and some new users are bitten quickly or thrown in the deep end, when at times all I think is needed is a bit of a helping hand.
In three sentences or less, summarize your involvement with Wikimedia projects.
I've been on Wikipedia since March 2008. Most of the work I do involves gnomish tasks, editing articles related to pop culture, as well as dispute resolution and assisting new users (often through my adoption program).
Please indicate a few articles to which you have made significant content contributions. (e.g. DYK, GA, FA, major revisions/expansions/copyedits).
I got 24 (TV series) to GA recently, and Amanda Fraser is a DYK I expanded. In the past I also wrote Ziegler Polar Expedition (a DYK) and Martha Logan (a GA).
How have you been involved with welcoming and helping new users on Wikipedia?
Apart from the adoption program which I take some new users through,
What do you see as the most important ways we could welcome newcomers or help new users become active contributors?
Be welcoming and understanding. Explain things in simplified terms. We were all new once. I remember I was pretty clueless when I started editing. it takes time to get accustomed to our ways on Wikipedia, our polices, our community. The easiest way to accomplish this would be to ask them a few questions to start off with about how much they know about Wikipedia, what their interests are, what they'd like to do on Wikipedia, and then develop a few things they can do to get started, and slowly introduce some policies into the mix as things go on. Bombarding people with a giant list of policies right off the bat can be daunting. Let them ask as many questions as they want. They learn better that way.
Have you had major conflicts with other editors? Blocks or bans? Involvement in arbitration? Feel free to offer context, if necessary.
I was banned in 2008 for six months for sharing accounts with an administrator (see AN discussion). Apart from that, the only ArbCom case I've been involved in is the ones I've filed as a neutral third party, such as the open Abortion case.
How often do you edit Wikipedia and check in on ongoing discussions? Will you be available regularly for at least two hours per week, in your role as a mentor?
I'm reasonably active in on and off-wiki discussions, and would be available for two hours a week to assist quite easily.
What else should we know about you that is relevant to being a Wikipedia Ambassador?
I'm pretty much on IRC all the time and am available to chat via email or Skype if required.

Discussion

Support steven will make for a great ambassador --Guerillero | My Talk 00:02, 30 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Support. Steven will be a good addition to the ambassador team. --Rosiestep (talk) 03:00, 30 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Support Having knowledge of a strong potential in Steven Zhang, it is easy for me to support this application. --My76Strat (talk) 05:27, 30 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Support. No concerns about Steven. I think he will be an excellent addition to the team. Best regards, Cind.amuse (Cindy) 14:42, 13 October 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Support. Sure. Welcome aboard. --_{Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus| talk to me} 04:30, 21 October 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Support-No concerns.Smallman12q (talk) 13:04, 22 October 2011 (UTC)[reply]