Democratizing Tech Education Through Mentorship
McOchieng Labs exists to bridge the gap between learning and doing. We pair aspiring technologists with experienced mentors to build real, production-grade solutions that matter.
Origin Story
Our Story
From a single idea to a thriving community of builders.
The Spark
McOchieng, a Microsoft MVP in Copilot Studio and Azure AI, noticed a gap — aspiring developers had access to tutorials but lacked mentorship and real-world project experience.
Building the Foundation
The first cohort of 10 mentees was formed. Five volunteer mentors came together to design structured learning pathways across Power Platform, Azure, AI, Data, and .NET.
First Ships
12 production-grade projects were shipped by mentees — from AI agents to cloud migrations. The Tech Clinic launched to provide drop-in mentorship hours.
Growing the Community
McOchieng Labs expanded to 50+ mentees and 6 mentors. Programs like Skills Hub, 4timeAgents, and ShipYard became pillars of the community.
The Team
Industry professionals volunteering their expertise.
Core Principles
Our Values
The principles that guide everything we build.
Mentorship First
Every program is built around the mentor-mentee relationship. We believe learning happens best with guidance.
Ship Over Study
We value building real things over endless tutorials. Mentees ship production projects, not toy demos.
Radical Transparency
Our governance, curriculum, and progress are open. We share what works, what doesn't, and what we're learning.
Community Driven
Decisions are made collectively. Mentors, mentees, and alumni all have a voice in shaping the community.
Accessibility
All core programs are free. We remove financial barriers so talent, not privilege, determines opportunity.
Continuous Growth
We encourage curiosity and iteration. Mistakes are learning moments, and growth is a lifelong journey.
Open Governance
Governance & Transparency
We believe in building trust through open governance. Here are the documents that guide our community.