Coming back to this; very sorry, it’s been a busy first month! 
Thank you so much for the warm welcome, all! 
I look forward to talking with all of you more in-depth soon!
@Jason_Nutt in terms of the Champions program, you can find more about it on this brand-spankin’ new page at MongoDB Developer Community Forums | MongoDB Champions
In terms of the initial blockers, I’ve been very impressed with your tenacity in your search for answers. You got this! 
Once I’m through my technical training myself, maybe I can help a bit around here, too.