SRC Seeking Volunteers For STEM Ambassadorship Programme
By: , January 29, 2021
Photo: Contributed
Research scientist and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Ambassador, Scientific Research Council (SRC) Dr. Shadae Foster (head of table), instructs students during a soap-making workshop. Occasion was the SRC’s Schools Science and Technology Societies (SSTS) Invasion held at the Ferncourt High School in 2019. (Photo: contributed)The Full Story
The Scientific Research Council (SRC) is inviting professionals working in a science, technology engineering and mathematics (STEM)-related field to apply to serve as volunteers under its new STEM Ambassador Programme.
The programme will allow industry experts to engage and encourage students to achieve academic and career goals within the STEM field, through consistent mentorship and interactive support.
“If you’re a professional over the age of 21 and you are in a STEM-related job or discipline across the public and private sectors, we’re asking you to volunteer,” Coordinator of the SRC’s Science and Technology Education Unit, Kavelle Hylton, told JIS News.
“We have a lot of participating schools and, currently, we have 15 ambassadors, so we’re hoping to get some more persons to reach out to us and become a volunteer,” she added.
She explained that the STEM ambassadors will assist their assigned school(s) by sharing industry advice, delivering career talks to students, hosting activities such as workshops, science camps, debates and competitions, and providing assistance with science fairs.
The STEM ambassador will also serve as a resource person for educators and students.
Ms. Hylton said that each year, “we will give the ambassadors a list of activities that they can carry out at their assigned school(s) and they must participate in at least one of these activities”.
“As a STEM ambassador you can also create your activity or project for the school, after meeting with the teachers and having identified a need, for example, a recycling programme or energy-conservation programme,” she noted.
Under the programme, volunteers will be required to renew their ambassadorship based on the tenure of their contract.
“We want volunteers to join the Ambassadorship Programme and contribute to the wider community and Jamaica as we improve skills and expertise in the STEM fields for the future of Jamaica,” Ms. Hylton said.
To become a STEM Ambassador, persons can contact the SRC at (876) 927-1771-4; 977-2193/5; 977-1110.
Having expressed an interest, volunteers will be required to fill out an application form and participate in a three-day virtual training session, after which they will be assigned to a primary, secondary or tertiary institution.