A Summer with Creative Encounters

At the end of the month, Creative Encounters (CE, formerly Creative Encounters with Science) will conclude its 29th summer of programs aimed at engaging youth and school-aged children in STEM programming. Over the summer more than 600 youth engaged with STEM through CE's week-long summer camps on campus. During the previous school year, the CE team also connected with 1,000+ youth through visits to local classroom and libraries, museums, and special STEM PD programming days.

CE is an outreach organization based at the University of Guelph that aims to inspire, support and spark curiosity through the minds of youth, encouraging their innovation and problem-solving skills. It promotes interest in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) among youth living in Guelph and beyond. The organization provides dynamic and hands-on learning experiences in STEM through the leadership of its instructors and mentors at camps, workshops, clubs, events, and more. This summer alone, 14 U of G undergraduate students, three high school students, and more than 40 volunteers helped programming come to life for camp attendees. Some of the more prominent initiatives include Indigenous Outreach (InSTEM), Promoting Awareness of Girls in Engineering and Science (PAGES), fostering digital literacy and computer science skills, and reaching underprivileged youth. 

“You can feel the excitement about STEM and learning the minute you walk into Thornbrough, the home building to Creative Encounters. It has such positive energy! It is place for youth to find fun in learning about science and engineering, and meet others who share similar passions and interests.” says Jean Hein, Manager of Outreach for CEPS, University of Guelph. 

A main supporter of CE is Actua, Canada’s largest STEM outreach organization with over 40 other university and college-based network members nationwide. Each year, the Actua network engages over 375,000 youth in 600 communities across Canada in transformative STEM learning experiences that build critical skills and confidence.

"We were excited to hear that Actua will receive funding from the newly launched Strategic Science Fund (SSF) from Government of Canada,” says Hein.

Actua will receive $38.4 million over five years from the Government of Canada’s Strategic Science Fund. This funding will make a difference across Canada, especially for CE. 

“Creative Encounters is grateful for our partnership with Actua,” says Clare Reid, CE Program Director. “The Strategic Science Fund is an excellent initiative that highlights the dedication Actua has to creating new, accessible and further-reaching opportunities for youth in STEM."

“We strive for excellence in all that we bring to our audience. Whether it be on-campus engagement through our female-identifying and gender diverse program (PAGES) or visiting community partners to bring hands-on STEM to their audiences (local libraries, community centres, etc.), CE is eager to continue our work as well as seek out new ventures with SSF backing.” says Reid.
 
This story was written by Izabela Savić as part of the Science Communicators: Research @ CEPS initiative. Izabela is a MSc candidate in the School of Computer Science under Dr. Xiaodong Lin. Her research focus is on network security and computer forensics to better equip law enforcement and user security.