Spotlight on geekStarters: Isaac Ward

Isaac Ward – Mentor of synthetic biology team from Notre-Dame Collegiate in High-River since 2015. This photo of Isaac was taken at the Lab skills workshop at University of Lethbridge in March 2017
 
10 Quick Questions for Isaac
1. How would you describe yourself in one sentence?
I am an adventurous person, who loves science and is a little too curious.
2. What do you love the most about your work/school?
I spent this past winter as a ski instructor, and really find it fulfilling when a student
has that eureka moment and realizes what they are learning.
3. What is your best accomplishment so far?
I think, that would have to be the journey to accomplishing my university degree and
all the adventures and achievements that I experienced along the way.
4. What is something you are working towards right now?
I was just accepted into a Bachelor of Education program, and will spend the next
few years working towards hopefully becoming a high school biology teacher.
5. How do you like to spend your downtime?
I really like spending my downtime in the outdoors, hiking and camping and then
skiing in the winter.
6. What is something you can’t imagine your life without?
I think I would have to say learning, and having access to education. This was not
always the case but once I was in university I really learned to love it.
7. What is one thing that people will be surprised to hear about you?
I feel like there are a number of things that people are surprised to learn about me,
It might have been the cougar that tried to eat me, or that I was once a Zamboni
driver, or that I originally went back to school to become a mountain guide, but
became as neuroscientist.
8. What is something you are afraid of?
I am not the biggest fan of spiders, and yet they are so interesting to watch…. from a
distance…. through glass.
9. What would you like your work to be ten years from now?
That is a tough call. If you had told me 10 years ago where I would be, I can not say
I would have believed it. 10 years from now I hope to be contributing to something
exciting!
10. What is one thing you appreciate about geekStarter?
I really appreciate the opportunities for enhanced learning, travel, and new
experiences. The program, from the Collegiate, through Entrepreneurial and High
School streams, has allowed me to expand my skills in areas far beyond what can
be taught within the limitations of a traditional classroom.