From Curiosity to Confidence: Supporting Youth in STEM
By: Lara Vronick
In 2017, Virtual Ventures — a STEM outreach program at Carleton University — partnered with BGC Ottawa (formerly Boys and Girls Clubs of Ottawa) to create a digital skills and technology program for youth across the city.
The Linked> program is part of a national initiative called Go Where Kids Are that reduces barriers preventing youth from accessing STEM education. The program recognizes and addresses that many youth face geographic, financial and systemic barriers to hands-on learning by bringing STEM to them through community programs youth are already utilizing. As part of the Go Where Kids Are initiative, Virtual Ventures delivers digital skill programming through after-school clubs.
“By removing barriers to access and delivering engaging, youth-centered STEM programming, Virtual Ventures has helped shift technology from something that feels out of reach to something full of opportunity,” says Chief Programs Officer at BGC Ottawa, Medin Admasu.
In 2024, with generous support from GHD Foundation, Virtual Ventures was able to renew its commitment to deliver Linked> clubs free of charge at BGC clubhouses in Ottawa.
“Because of this grant, Virtual Ventures can continue to deliver hands-on STEM experiences for equity-deserving youth in Ottawa. We are so proud to have formed a relationship with GHD Foundation that helps inspire more youth to consider pursuing science, engineering or technology education in the future,” says Kyra Bloomfield, Program Director at Virtual Ventures.
Not only did support from GHD Foundation ensure programming continued to be offered at no cost to participants, but it also helped Virtual Ventures reach a new milestone— over 1,100 youth participants reached in BGC clubs across the city.
“Since its launch, Linked> has played a transformative role in how our members engage with technology and envision their futures. The program reflects our shared commitment to equity, skill-building, and creating supportive spaces where young people can grow, connect, and thrive across all BGC Ottawa Clubhouses,” says Admasu.
Carleton University computer science students, Nishola Oluyemi and Demilade Lawal both work as Virtual Ventures program instructors for the Linked> program visiting multiple BGC clubhouses every week throughout the fall and winter semesters. They have seen the positive impact of the program first-hand and say they have learned a lot from the experience too.
“One thing with working with kids, they always think outside the box, so I’ve learned to hear everybody out when working with a team,” says Lawal, “They try very unique and innovative ways of doing things. I might have the answer sheet in front of me but, hey, that’s a brilliant way to think,” he says.
Linked> club activities explore robotics and coding, circuitry and hands-on design challenges, supplying participants with all the necessary technology and equipment to participate. Virtual Ventures instructors see a noticeable shift in the club participants’ attitudes towards STEM learning.
“One club member asked me if they wanted to get into building and robotics at home, where they could get these gadgets from. This semester they came back to me and told me for Christmas they asked for one of the things that I showed them,” says Lawal.
While some club participants are quick to respond to the activities and get their hands on the equipment, for others, it’s the first opportunity they’ve had to use some of the technology.
“In one of my favourite activities is the engineering kits we give them to build a grabber tool. They’re presented with all these materials, but what are they doing to do with it?” says Oluyemi. “It’s a very creative experience because they build them in different ways and it’s something that I don’t think many of them have done before.”
Emerging technology is rapidly influencing how young learners interact with the world around them and digital literacy skills have become fundamental to early childhood learning. Carleton professor and Canada Research Chair in Human Oriented Computer Security, Sonia Chiasson is exploring online safety for kids through research.
Chiasson equates teaching children digital security with learning how to cross a street safely.
“Children need to have online critical thinking skills and know how to be safe digital citizens because that’s part of their everyday world,” says Chiasson.
The need for digital skill development and technology learning opportunities for youth, reinforced through research, is felt by Virtual Ventures instructors every day in their program delivery.
“They liked it and are interested in it. But if we didn’t come, they probably would have never experienced that,” says Lawal.
Support for programs like Go Where Kids Are not only sparks interest in STEM among young learners, it also ensures equitable access to education in critical areas.
Learn more about Virtual Ventures.