diff --git a/.github/workflows/lint.yml b/.github/workflows/lint.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..aa29c8b7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/lint.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+name: Lint
+
+on: [pull_request]
+
+jobs:
+  lint:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    steps:
+    - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+    - name: Set up Python
+      uses: actions/setup-python@v4
+      with:
+        python-version: '3.12'
+    - name: Install dependencies
+      run: |
+        python -m pip install --upgrade pip
+        pip install ".[dev]"
+    - name: Run ruff
+      run: ruff check .
+    - name: Run mypy
+      run: mypy starter_repo tests
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.github/workflows/test.yml b/.github/workflows/test.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..7ae3c4a6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/test.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+name: Test
+
+on: [pull_request]
+
+jobs:
+  test:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    strategy:
+      matrix:
+        python-version: ['3.11', '3.12']
+    steps:
+    - uses: actions/checkout@v3
+    - name: Set up Python ${{ matrix.python-version }}
+      uses: actions/setup-python@v4
+      with:
+        python-version: ${{ matrix.python-version }}
+    - name: Install dependencies
+      run: |
+        python -m pip install --upgrade pip
+        pip install ".[dev]"
+    - name: Run tests
+      run: pytest
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..316c25f8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+# Python
+__pycache__/
+*.py[cod]
+*$py.class
+*.so
+.Python
+build/
+develop-eggs/
+dist/
+downloads/
+eggs/
+.eggs/
+lib/
+lib64/
+parts/
+sdist/
+var/
+wheels/
+*.egg-info/
+.installed.cfg
+*.egg
+
+# Virtual Environment
+venv/
+env/
+ENV/
+
+# IDE
+.idea/
+.vscode/
+*.swp
+*.swo
+
+# Project specific
+*.png
+*.csv
+!data/sample.csv
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.pre-commit-config.yaml b/.pre-commit-config.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..89d12d53
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.pre-commit-config.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+repos:
+-   repo: https://github.com/charliermarsh/ruff-pre-commit
+    rev: v0.1.6
+    hooks:
+    -   id: ruff
+        args: [--fix]
+    -   id: ruff-format
+-   repo: https://github.com/pre-commit/mirrors-mypy
+    rev: v1.7.1
+    hooks:
+    -   id: mypy
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/LICENSE b/LICENSE
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..25c11fa0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/LICENSE
@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+MIT License
+
+Copyright (c) 2025 Graham Neubig
+
+Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy
+of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal
+in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights
+to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell
+copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is
+furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
+
+The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all
+copies or substantial portions of the Software.
+
+THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR
+IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
+FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE
+AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER
+LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM,
+OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE
+SOFTWARE.
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 0139dc2e..2f5f5f1b 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -1,2 +1,97 @@
-# starter-repo
-An example starter repo for Python projects
+# Python Project Starter Repository
+
+This repository serves as a template demonstrating Python best practices for data analysis projects. It includes:
+
+- An example Python program (reading in data and plotting)
+- Command-line argument parsing ([argparse](https://docs.python.org/3/library/argparse.html))
+- Code style checking, aka "linting" (with [ruff](https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff))
+- Static type checking (with [mypy](https://mypy.readthedocs.io/))
+- Pre-commit hooks that run these checks automatically (with [pre-commit](https://pre-commit.com/))
+- Testing (with [pytest](https://docs.pytest.org/))
+- Continuous Integration (with [GitHub Actions](https://github.com/features/actions))
+- Package management (with [pip](https://pip.pypa.io/) and [pyproject.toml](https://pip.pypa.io/en/stable/reference/build-system/pyproject-toml/))
+- An open source license ([MIT](https://opensource.org/licenses/MIT))
+
+## Features
+
+### 1. Data Processing and Visualization
+
+The main script ([starter_repo/plot_data.py](starter_repo/plot_data.py)) can be replaced with any code that you want to write.
+
+Installation can be done as follows:
+
+```bash
+# Install the package
+pip install .
+
+# Create a plot from the sample data
+python -m starter_repo.plot_data data/sample.csv year population --title "Population Growth" -o population.png
+```
+
+### 2. Testing
+
+Writing unit tests is a good way to ensure that your code behaves as expected, and you can write unit tests before you write the code that you want to test (aka "test-driven development"). Test files are located in the [tests/](tests/) directory.
+
+To run tests:
+
+```bash
+pip install ".[dev]"  # Install development dependencies
+pytest
+```
+
+### 3. Code Quality Tools
+
+This project uses several tools to maintain code quality:
+
+#### Pre-commit Hooks
+
+We use [pre-commit](.pre-commit-config.yaml) with:
+
+- [Ruff](https://github.com/charliermarsh/ruff) for linting and formatting
+- [mypy](https://mypy.readthedocs.io/) for static type checking
+
+To set up pre-commit:
+
+```bash
+pip install pre-commit
+pre-commit install
+```
+
+### 4. Continuous Integration
+
+GitHub Actions workflows are set up for:
+
+- [Linting](.github/workflows/lint.yml): Runs Ruff and mypy
+- [Testing](.github/workflows/test.yml): Runs pytest on multiple Python versions
+
+
+## Contributing
+
+1. Fork the repository
+2. Install development dependencies: `pip install -e ".[dev]"`
+3. Install pre-commit hooks: `pre-commit install`
+4. Make your changes
+5. Run tests: `pytest`
+6. Submit a pull request
+
+## License
+
+This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the [LICENSE](LICENSE) file for details.
+
+> **Note**: Without a license, the code is under exclusive copyright by default. This means no one can copy, distribute, or modify your work without facing potential legal consequences. Adding a license (like MIT) explicitly grants these permissions, making it clear how others can use your code.
+
+## Citation
+
+This was created by [Graham Neubig](https://phontron.com) primarily as an example for student researchers.
+If you use this repository in your research, please cite it using the following BibTeX entry:
+
+```bibtex
+@misc{neubig2025starter,
+  author = {Graham Neubig},
+  title = {Python Project Starter Repository},
+  year = {2025},
+  publisher = {GitHub},
+  journal = {GitHub Repository},
+  howpublished = {\url{https://github.com/neubig/starter-repo}}
+}
+```
diff --git a/data/sample.csv b/data/sample.csv
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..c1fe84b9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data/sample.csv
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+year,population
+2000,6115
+2001,6214
+2002,6312
+2003,6411
+2004,6510
+2005,6609
+2006,6709
+2007,6809
+2008,6909
+2009,7009
+2010,7109
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/mypy.ini b/mypy.ini
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..95ace867
--- /dev/null
+++ b/mypy.ini
@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+[mypy]
+python_version = 3.12
+warn_return_any = true
+warn_unused_configs = true
+disallow_untyped_defs = true
+check_untyped_defs = true
+namespace_packages = true
+
+[mypy.plugins.numpy.*]
+ignore_errors = true
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..25c05f2a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+[build-system]
+requires = ["hatchling"]
+build-backend = "hatchling.build"
+
+[tool.hatch.build.targets.wheel]
+packages = ["starter_repo"]
+
+[project]
+name = "starter-repo"
+version = "0.1.0"
+authors = [
+    { name="Graham Neubig", email="neubig@gmail.com" },
+]
+description = "A starter repository demonstrating Python best practices"
+readme = "README.md"
+license = "MIT"
+requires-python = ">=3.11"
+dependencies = [
+    "pandas",
+    "matplotlib",
+]
+
+[project.optional-dependencies]
+dev = [
+    "pytest",
+    "ruff",
+    "mypy",
+    "pre-commit",
+    "pandas-stubs",
+]
+
+[tool.ruff]
+line-length = 100
+
+[tool.ruff.lint]
+select = ["E", "F", "I"]
+
+
+
+[tool.pytest.ini_options]
+testpaths = ["tests"]
+python_files = ["test_*.py"]
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/starter_repo/__init__.py b/starter_repo/__init__.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..0c2751dc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/starter_repo/__init__.py
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+"""A starter repository demonstrating Python best practices."""
+
+__version__ = "0.1.0"
diff --git a/starter_repo/plot_data.py b/starter_repo/plot_data.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..921ef635
--- /dev/null
+++ b/starter_repo/plot_data.py
@@ -0,0 +1,73 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env python3
+
+import argparse
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
+import pandas as pd
+
+
+def read_csv_data(file_path: Path, x_col: str, y_col: str) -> tuple[list[float], list[float]]:
+    """Read data from a CSV file and return specified columns.
+
+    Args:
+        file_path: Path to the CSV file
+        x_col: Name of the column to use for x-axis
+        y_col: Name of the column to use for y-axis
+
+    Returns:
+        Tuple of x and y data as lists
+    """
+    df = pd.read_csv(file_path)
+    return df[x_col].tolist(), df[y_col].tolist()
+
+
+def create_plot(
+    x_data: list[float], y_data: list[float], x_label: str, y_label: str, title: str
+) -> plt.Figure:
+    """Create a plot from the provided data.
+
+    Args:
+        x_data: Data for x-axis
+        y_data: Data for y-axis
+        x_label: Label for x-axis
+        y_label: Label for y-axis
+        title: Plot title
+
+    Returns:
+        matplotlib Figure object
+    """
+    fig, ax = plt.subplots()
+    ax.plot(x_data, y_data)
+    ax.set_xlabel(x_label)
+    ax.set_ylabel(y_label)
+    ax.set_title(title)
+    return fig
+
+
+def main() -> None:
+    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="Create plots from CSV data")
+    parser.add_argument("file_path", type=Path, help="Path to the CSV file")
+    parser.add_argument("x_column", type=str, help="Column name for x-axis")
+    parser.add_argument("y_column", type=str, help="Column name for y-axis")
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "--output",
+        "-o",
+        type=Path,
+        default=Path("plot.png"),
+        help="Output file path (default: plot.png)",
+    )
+    parser.add_argument(
+        "--title", "-t", type=str, default="Data Plot", help="Plot title (default: Data Plot)"
+    )
+
+    args = parser.parse_args()
+
+    x_data, y_data = read_csv_data(args.file_path, args.x_column, args.y_column)
+    fig = create_plot(x_data, y_data, args.x_column, args.y_column, args.title)
+    fig.savefig(args.output)
+    plt.close(fig)
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()
diff --git a/tests/test_plot_data.py b/tests/test_plot_data.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..32bdb060
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_plot_data.py
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+from pathlib import Path
+
+import pandas as pd
+import pytest
+
+from starter_repo.plot_data import create_plot, read_csv_data
+
+
+@pytest.fixture
+def sample_csv(tmp_path: Path) -> Path:
+    """Create a sample CSV file for testing."""
+    df = pd.DataFrame({"x": [1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0], "y": [2.0, 4.0, 6.0, 8.0, 10.0]})
+    file_path = tmp_path / "test.csv"
+    df.to_csv(file_path, index=False)
+    return file_path
+
+
+def test_read_csv_data(sample_csv: Path) -> None:
+    """Test reading data from CSV file."""
+    x_data, y_data = read_csv_data(sample_csv, "x", "y")
+    assert x_data == [1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0]
+    assert y_data == [2.0, 4.0, 6.0, 8.0, 10.0]
+
+
+def test_create_plot() -> None:
+    """Test plot creation."""
+    x_data = [1.0, 2.0, 3.0]
+    y_data = [2.0, 4.0, 6.0]
+    fig = create_plot(x_data, y_data, "X", "Y", "Test Plot")
+    assert fig is not None
+    # Basic check that the figure contains the expected elements
+    ax = fig.axes[0]
+    assert ax.get_xlabel() == "X"
+    assert ax.get_ylabel() == "Y"
+    assert ax.get_title() == "Test Plot"