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This year, �Ӱ�ԭ�� University’s award-winning social impact organization Virtual Ventures (VV) was named winner of the 2024 Award for Excellence.

The Actua Award for Excellence recognizes network members who exemplify annual excellence in unlocking potential for youth and removing barriers in STEM.

Actua serves as Canada’s largest STEM outreach organization, providing youth with transformative learning experiences through its national network of 45 universities and colleges. The network members collectively engage with over 375,000 youth in 600 communities across the country, providing STEM experiences that build critical skills and actively break down barriers to Canada’s STEM culture.

As one of the Actua network members, Virtual Ventures is an award-winning social impact organization run through �Ӱ�ԭ��’s Faculty of Engineering and Design, creating opportunities for youth from junior kindergarten to Grade 12 to engage with STEM in an exciting and impactful way. VV offers specialty summer camps, after-school clubs, in-school workshops, on-campus events, and community programs.

Kyra Bloomfield, Youth Outreach Coordinator and Program Director of Virtual Ventures, said it was an honour to receive this award from Canada’s leading STEM youth outreach organization. VV being recognized was a testament to the entire team’s hard work, passion, and dedication to continually push the boundaries of innovation and impact among youth.

Last year, VV celebrated its 30th anniversary of STEM outreach with a record-breaking year reaching 22,000 youth participants. With this milestone, the team has more than doubled its reach within two years, from 10,000 youth in 2022 and 15,000 in 2023.

The culmination of VV’s big year took place at the Delta Hotel in downtown Ottawa on Jan. 22 for Actua’s National Conference. The annual event is a chance for Actua network members to gather and celebrate the past year, share stories and best practices, and for the whole network to kick off the new year of STEM learning experiences.

Improving, Expanding Programs

On top of their thriving youth enrollment, VV made strides in 2024 to make existing programs even more accessible and to offer specialty workshops to even more communities.

In 2024, they launched the new Black Youth in STEM program. Partnering with the at the Sprott School of Business, the Ottawa Catholic School Board’s Graduation Coaches for Black Students, BGC Ottawa and Shopify, VV was able to create a program to show youth the opportunities for innovation and entrepreneurship in STEM industry mentors, role models, and partnerships are the core of this program.

In 2024, VV launched a Summer Community Outreach Program, bringing hands-on STEM experiences to other youth-serving organizations including BGC Ottawa, rural Ottawa Public Library branches, and the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario. Other achievements the addition of another full-time staff member, Assistant Director Halle Blowes, who added stability and sustainability to their work.

Blowes was integral in making those connections for the Black Youth in STEM program and the Summer Community Outreach program.

Retaining and Training Staff

Just as important as keeping youth participants engaged is keeping their instructors coming back year after year.

In 2024, VV created 70 jobs for university students, including �Ӱ�ԭ�� students from the Faculty of Engineering and Design and the Faculty of Science, as well as teaching candidates from different universities that come to Ottawa for summer jobs. “We’re very proud that our instructors come back semester after semester,” said Bloomfield. “Instructors are the heart of our organization, they’re the ones providing those safe spaces for the kids.”

Recently, Actua also began highlighting the efforts and work of their members’ instructors. From over 1,000 instructors across Canada, they choose three who are recognized for their hard work and given a scholarship presented by .

At the National Conference, the Instructor Recognition Award was awarded to VV’s own Julie Delorme.

The Actua National Conference included other honours for �Ӱ�ԭ��’s Outreach team: Bloomfield herself was presented with the Long-Term Leadership Recognition for her five-year anniversary on the Director Team.

As they look to the future, VV’s team aims to continue to guide young Canadians into STEM careers and empower them to be innovators and change-makers in their communities.