Featured Speaker:
Donna Labun, BSc, BEd, Kelvin High School, Winnipeg, MB
Winner of the 2025 Beaumier Award for High School/CÉGEP Chemistry Teachers
Bio: Donna Labun teaches Chemistry at Kelvin High School in Winnipeg. Committed to the principle that science is best learned through experience, she immerses her students in chemistry by studying gas laws while scuba diving and serving delicious liquid-nitrogen ice cream. Challenging students with a rigorous International Baccalaureate Chemistry curriculum while making complex concepts engaging and accessible, she also invites students to consider broader issues of sustainability by offering opportunities for hands-on research through the NorthSTAR program (Northern Student-led Arctic Research). In partnership with University of Manitoba, students have travelled with her to Churchill for the past 11 years to conduct research on the behaviour and health of polar bears, linking their observations to climate change. Scientific collaboration is fostered by partnering with students from Northern communities. Donna mentors students to present their results at conferences such as ArcticNet, Wildlife Society, and the Canadian Society of Ecology and Evolution, and leads annual Science Rendezvous workshops. Donna is also a member of the Shad Manitoba summer faculty, where she organizes field trips to Churchill, exposing students to Arctic Science and traditional knowledge. She obtained her B.Sc. in Chemistry and B.Ed. in Secondary Education at University of Winnipeg.
Featured Panelists:
Patrick Crewdson, HBSc, PhD, Thames Valley District School Board, London, ON
Bio: Patrick Crewdson earned his PhD in Chemistry from the University of Ottawa. He began his career in industrial catalyst design in Germany (2006-2008) and then moved to industrial polymerization/new product development with LANXESS and Western University (2008-2014). He worked with McGraw-Hill to write textbooks(2013-2017) while also teaching with the Avon Maitland District School Board in Ontario (2014-2017). Since 2017, he has been engaging students in physics, biology, math, and chemistry as a high school teacher with the Thames Valley District School Board in London, Ontario.
Wendy Cooluris, BSc, BEd, South Kamloops Secondary, Kamloops, BC
Bio: Wendy Cooluris has been a science and chemistry teacher in BC for over 17 years. She has taken on several pilot projects aimed at reaching vulnerable youth, re-engaging students through nature and human connection, and helping them develop a love for the sciences. Through what her students fondly call her (intentional and confessed) “rage bait,” she has “tricked” them into emotional and memorable science experiences. Through that emotional journey, she inspires them to commit to daily improvement and to set their own standards. Wendy respectfully acknowledges that she lives and work on the unceded territory of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc within Secwépemc’ulucw.
Robbie Kailley, BSc, BEd, MEd, J.N. Burnett Secondary School, Richmond, BC
Bio: Robbie Kailley received his B.Sc., B.Ed. (teaching specialization in Chemistry) and M.Ed. from the University of British Columbia. He has been teaching Chemistry 11, 12 and Advanced Placement, along with other science courses for over 30 years at J.N. Burnett Secondary School in Richmond B.C. His joy of teaching students comes from watching them gain confidence as they acquire logical, analytical, and interpersonal skills through learning Chemistry. Over the years, feedback from hundreds of former students, as they successfully transitioned to University/College Chemistry courses, has verified the effectiveness of his teaching methods. Teaching with clarity, rigour, humour and compassion reaches students of all abilities and promotes their self-belief that they can pursue post-secondary in their chosen field. In addition to teaching, Robbie has enjoyed designing labs and worksheets, culminating in his own student workbook with hundreds of practice questions of varying degrees of difficulty and visual models to help learn deeply. He is grateful and excited to speak with others about teaching Chemistry! He has been fortunate in his career to be recognized by the University of Chicago for their Outstanding Educator Award, and by Richmond City for their U-Roc Youth Mentorship Teaching Award.