Ancaster High Students Host Virtual Conference to Promote Diversity in STEM
COVID-19 has put countless plans on hold, but it could not stop two Ancaster High School students from executing an important event. From November 27-29, Michelle Luu and Leanne Tran hosted their own virtual conference for GROW STEM.
GROW STEM stands for “Girls Rising to Opportunities Within Science Technology Engineering and Math.” The conference is meant to encourage and empower more girls and non-binary high-school students to explore and pursue STEM.
Michelle and Leanne were inspired to launch GROW STEM after noticing a lack of diversity in their Introduction to Computer Science course. The students described this as an isolating moment. Instead of letting this unfortunate reality bring them down, the two decided to use it as motivation.
GROW STEM was intended to be an in-person conference, but Michelle and Leanne were forced to adapt due to public health restrictions. With no event planning experience, the students were already prepared to face challenges. The virtual setup introduced a whole new set of obstacles that the organizers had to address.
Planning sessions moved to late-night video chats where the two could brainstorm ideas. In-person meetings with partners shifted to long email chains where responses could take days.
Despite the hurdles, Michelle and Leanne were able to organize the conference around their school, extracurricular and work schedules. It might not have been possible without help from their dedicated team of ambassadors. Along the way, the Grade 12 students learned valuable lessons about balancing a budget, ordering product, and running an event over Zoom.
The first GROW STEM conference ended up being a huge success. The event featured interactive workshops, panel discussions, and networking opportunities. The months of planning seemed to have paid off, as Michelle and Leanne were able to bring four universities on as partners. Ryerson University, McMaster University, the University of Waterloo, and Ontario Tech University took part in the weekend festivities, helping to inspire young minds across the province.
The event was made possible by Government of Canada through RisingYouth, a grant program ran by TakingITGlobal and Canada Service Corps. The initiative lets young people apply for microgrants to implement community service projects to help their communities. The students also received donations from Scholars Ancaster, a new tutoring centre in Ancaster operated by two female entrepreneurs. Amy Furyk and Mary McGowan are passionate about the power of education and have announced a STEM program at their facility.
With their first conference in the books, the GROW STEM team is now looking towards the future. Michelle and Leanne are hoping that virtual events will soon be a thing of the past and that their next conference will be an in-person one. The students are also looking into organizing specialized events around specific fields such as medical, outer space and cyber technology.
Before any of these plans become a reality, Michelle and Leanne are first looking to “grow” their team. For anyone passionate about diversity in STEM, be sure to connect with the GROW STEM team on Instagram.
Updated on Thursday, December 03, 2020.