Team:Lethbridge HS/Team
STUDENTS
David Basil
Grade 12
Mina Akbary
Grade 12
Hi! My name is Mina Akbary-Zheng, I am seventeen years old and I am in grade 12 at Winston Churchill High School. I was excited to join iGEM for the second time because I loved the idea of creating something completely unique with people with similar interests to me. I love designing and coding on the wiki and learning new things about lab work and synthetic biology. I have not yet decided what I want to study in post secondary but iGEM has led me towards a path in engineering or computer science. Besides iGEM, I love dancing, listening to music (Jazz, La La Land or Hamilton) and annoying my parents while singing in the shower.
Dewuni De Silva
Grade 12
Heyyy! My name is Dewuni De Silva and this is my second year of iGEM! I am 17 years old and I am in grade 12 at Winston Churchill High School. I originally joined iGEM to learn more about synthetic biology, as well as to gain experience in the wet lab. However, I have now found myself enjoying various different aspects of iGEM such as coding the wiki, as well as talking to various members of my community. Joining iGEM has opened my eyes to various career paths, and after graduating high school I hope to continue learning about science and biology in post secondary. Aside from this I love listening to anything Disney and eating chocolate! :))
Rebecca Avileli
Grade 12
Hello! I am a grade 12, 17 year old student at Winston Churchill High School, Lethbridge. I joined iGEM because of my interest in synthetic biology and the idea of creating a biological system to a solve a problem. After high school I plan to go to university and work on a degree toward biochem. In my spare time, I love volunteering for a good cause, because I believe I have the ability to. I also enjoy going on long walks around the lake and interacting with people.
Alice Zhang
Grade 12
Hello, it’s Alice here and I am seventeen years young, attending grade 12 at Winston Churchill High School. This is my second year of iGEM and I have learned even more if that’s even possible. Gotta love synthetic biology! Being in iGEM has NEVER been so fun! My future after iGEM is undecided but I’d really love to go to Disneyland again and finally take a picture with Donald Duck. In my normal life, I enjoy chocolate milk and that’s all.
Michelle Wu
Grade 12
Elisha Wong
Grade 12
Hello! I am currently a grade 12 student at Catholic Central High School and began iGEM during the second half of my grade 11 school year. I decided to join iGEM because I am extremely passionate about the sciences and was eager to learn more outside of the high school realm. I am very grateful to have received this incredible opportunity to expand my scientific knowledge. My favourite part of iGEM was human practices and presenting. I enjoyed educating others and our community about our project and iGEM.
Aroma Pageni
Grade 12
Hi! My name is Aroma Pageni and I am currently in grade 12 at Winston Churchill High School. This is my second year in iGEM and I have particularly enjoyed this season. I love being able to work with other people my age to address important issues in the world head-on. In iGEM, I enjoy designing and coding the wiki and working in the lab. After high school, I want to complete a bachelor’s degree and then hopefully go to Law School. When I am not in iGEM, I am usually watching rom-coms or taking pictures with my camera.
Mark Lea
Undergraduate
My name is Mark, I just finished Grade 12 and have recently started university as a biochemistry major. This is my second year in iGEM, and I really enjoyed the last season so I decided to join again. The best part of iGEM to me is the Boston jamboree where we get to present our project, but also see the many other projects from teams around the world. Stan loona!
Julien Todd
Grade 11
Linda He
Grade 11
Heyo! My name is Linda He and I am a grade 11 student attending Chinook High School. I first joined iGEM because I wanted to expand my knowledge and experience beyond what I could get from school. And it’s been a ride ever since! I’ve met so many new people, learned a ton, and experienced new things. My favorite part of iGEM was getting to work in a lab for the first time and being able to talk to professionals in human practices. iGEM has opened up so many future opportunities for me, as well as helped grow my interest in biology. When I'm not doing iGEM, I enjoy dancing ballet and acro,reading, playing my instruments, and fangirling over Freddie Mercury!
Andy Sun
Undergraduate
Hello, my name is Andy Sun. I just started my undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto. I was previously a student at Winston Churchill High School. I joined iGEM to discover more about synthetic biology, and I have found that my interests are primarily in modelling and wet lab. Other than iGEM I enjoy playing the piano, going on airplanes and listening to classical music!
Karen He
Undergraduate
Hi, my name is Karen! I just started my undergraduate degree at the University of Alberta. I was previously a student at at Chinook High School. I joined iGEM because science is my favourite! iGEM has provided me with a wonderful amount of scientific knowledge-- but also other important things, such as Human Practices, presentation-making, and public speaking. Other than science, I love cats, cereal, and walking in nature.
Natasha Woitte
Grade 12
Hey! My name is Natasha and I am currently a grade twelve student at Catholic Central High. I was interested in joining iGEM because I wanted to gain more experience in various fields of science to get a better idea about what I would like to pursue later in life. My favourite part about iGEM was learning how to code, working in the wet lab, and meeting other students my age who have similar interests as me. In my spare time, I enjoy volunteering at school sporting events, hanging out with friends and family, and babysitting.
Rachel Avileli
Grade 11
Heyy!!! My name is Rachel Avileli and this is my first year in iGEM! I am 16 years old and in grade 11 at Winston Churchill High School. I joined igem because I wanted to learn more about synthetic biology. However, I found myself gaining tons of new skills and enjoying various different aspects of iGEM such as working in the wet lab, coding, as well as talking to various members of my community. Joining iGEM has opened my eyes to various career paths, and after graduating high school I hope to continue learning about science and biology in post-secondary. Outside iGem I prefer to spend my time being unproductive and watching some Netflix.
Thomas Byrne
Grade 11
Shada Aborawi
Grade 11
Hello! My name is Shada and I am a grade 11 student at Lethbridge Collegiate Institute. This is my first year doing iGEM and I joined because I loved the idea of getting to use my hands to learn about science and I wanted to expand my knowledge beyond the textbooks I read at school. I have loved getting to do lab work this season and I really enjoyed getting to talk to various professionals in different fields and getting to hold different events to interact with members of the community. After highschool I would like to either go into law or medicinal research. In my free time, I love watching movies and painting.
Katie Vienneau
Grade 12
ADVISORS
Sydnee Calhoun
Graduate
Hi there! My name is Sydnee Calhoun and this is my fourth year advising the Lethbridge High School iGEM team. I am in my first year of my Master of Science in Biochemistry at the University of Lethbridge. I love anything antibiotics, RNA, ribosome, or synthetic biology related. Outside of science I enjoy reading, coffee, hanging out with friends, and cooking.
Chris Isaac
Graduate
I joined iGEM in 2012 to take a chance on something new. Since then, I’ve had the pleasure of continuing to participate, mentor, and explore new ideas in synthetic biology. The best part of iGEM is the ability to engage in a meaningful multidisciplinary project and develop solutions to emerging challenges. I am currently working in Washington, D.C. with the Nuclear Threat Initiative to bridge gaps between synthetic biology and public policy.
Dia Kouptantsis
Undergraduate
Hydrogen Iodide (HI), my name is Dia Koupantsis and this is my first year with the Lethbridge Collegiate team as well as my first year as an advisor for the High School iGEM Team. I am currently studying biological science with a specialization in molecular genetics at the University of Lethbridge, I have a particular interest in RNA based research, genomics, epigenetics and synthetic biology. I joined iGEM because it seems like the perfect place to grow my passion for science, to be in a wonderful team such as the Lethbridge High School team, and of course to learn more about applied synthetic biology.
Luke Saville
Undergraduate
My name is Luke Saville and I am from Calgary, AB. I have just completed my third year as a biochemistry major at the University of Lethbridge. I also do RNA based research at the University of Lethbridge. I joined iGEM because it seems like a good way to be surrounded by cutting edge science that is constantly growing.
Kristi Turton
Graduate
Hi I am Kristi. This is my second year advising the Lethbridge High School team. I have just started my masters in Biochemistry at the UofL and am part of the RNA innovation program. My interests are pathology, therapeutics and anything synbio related. My fun fact is that I call the students Beans so much that I have Patrick Wu saying it too :)
Dr. Laura Keffer-Wilkes
Primary PI
Hello! I am super pumped to be a part of the Lethbridge High School team this year. I am the Primary Investigator and it has been amazing working with all these awesome young people. I studied RNA modification enzymes in graduate school and love STEM outreach. This year’s iGEM team has continuously impressed me with their dedication, knowledge and creativity. I especially loved the music recital they organized. I hope you enjoyed learning about our project!
Dr. Peter Dibble
Secondary PI