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“I became a Let’s Talk Science volunteer back in 2014 because I didn’t have any experience working with kids. I thought this would be a helpful skill to have as a scientist.  It turns out that I love working with kids on STEM outreach activities. They’re a great audience and they’ve taught me how to become a much better science communicator. If you can communicate with a class of elementary school children about science, you can communicate science with anyone. Kids aren’t shy about giving you immediate and honest feedback. You know if you’re gaining, holding or losing their interest.

“After two years of volunteering, I applied to help coordinate the program so I could have an even bigger impact on the children and youth that we reach. I’ve volunteered more than 700 hours, run over 200 activities and shared my passion for science with upwards of 6,000 students. Some of the students who participated in our events when they were younger are now enrolled in STEM programs here at McMaster and we run into them at volunteer fairs. Some of those students even volunteer with us now. While the scientist in me can’t conclude that Let’s Talk Science caused them to enroll, I’m sure it helped.”

Portia is a PhD candidate in the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behavior. Portia’s research explores how to make surgical training more efficient and effective, using evidence from psychology and sport science research. Portia received Let’s Talk Science’s National Volunteer Award in 2016 and was the runner-up for the David Colcleugh Leadership Award in 2019. 

Let’s Talk Science is a national charitable organization that provides evidence-based science, technology, engineering and mathematics programs at no cost for Canadian youth and educators. McMaster was among the first universities to join Let’s Talk Science in 1998. Today, more than 200 undergraduate and graduate students volunteer each year and run classroom, afterschool and on-campus activities for more than 15,000 elementary and secondary school students in Hamilton, Grimsby, Six Nations of the Grand River, Port Dover, Simcoe, Brantford, Burlington, Milton and Oakville. Coordinating Let’s Talk Science outreach this year at McMaster are Alex Qian, Allison Guitor, Felix Croteau, Leena AlShenaiber and Stellena Mathiaparanam.

Last year, 51 per cent of youth participating in McMaster’s Let’s Talk Science activities reported increased awareness of STEM careers and 49 per cent indicated an increased desire to take optional high school science courses.