Several students come early. Not for the session, for the animals. Ms. Hunter’s cat Mitsy and Mr. Driedger’s dogs, Bernie and Ellie, are already in the room when they arrive. Dr. Jessica Hutta, veterinarian, noticed. “Even in the teenage years, the impulse to be ‘cool’ was overridden by the joy of being with an animal,” she reflected.
That kind of session, unexpected, hands-on, hard to forget, is what the Sci-9 Club is built around. Open to students in Grades 9 to 11, the Co-Curricular Activity (CCA) runs during lunch, bringing medical practitioners, scientists, and researchers directly into the room. It has been running for three years. The students who join come back, year after year.
Neuroscientist Eric Carmichael fits a student with an EEG headset during a Sci-9 Club session on brain activity and development.
Learning That Goes Further
The Sci-9 Club was born when a group of students wanted more science than class time could offer. The original plan was advanced labs and higher-level content. Then the focus changed. “We wanted the program to feel like an invitation, not an obligation, so we pivoted. Instead of more theory, we asked: how can we bring scientific practice into the classroom?” explains Ms. Blum.
Science Department Head Jennifer Hunter and Science Teacher Stephanie Blum built and run the club together. Ms. Hunter’s idea to bring in guest speakers changed everything. Most come from the St. George’s parent community, people who bring their expertise and a clear interest in the students sitting in front of them.
Dr. Jessica Hutta demonstrates how to use a pulse oximeter on Bernie during her Sci-9 Club session on veterinary medicine, as Mr. Driedger looks on.
Real Science, Up Close
Sessions vary. Dr. Teresa Rudkin ran a suturing workshop with pigskin and practice kits. Dr. Christopher Labos led a session on how to read health headlines with skepticism. Dr. Cédric Yansouni arrived with a COVID rapid test and walked students through exactly how it works, and why an expired one can’t be trusted. Dr. Perry Gdalevitch let students handle surgical instruments and examine materials used in reconstructive procedures.
This year delved further into research. Ludovic Mouttet from McGill presented his stem cell work on chemotherapy’s effects on heart cells. Neuroscientists Eric Carmichael and Mallar Chakravarty explored how the brain maps space and memory. Dr. Shannon Salvador spoke about her work as a gynaecologic oncologist and her advocacy for women’s health research at the government level.
During Dr. Hutta’s visit, students enthusiastically took turns measuring heart rate and oxygen levels. For Daniel Greenberg ’26, who has attended Sci-9 since Grade 9, Dr. Hutta’s session reframed something he had never thought to question.
“Becoming a veterinarian is actually taking on more knowledge in a sense than a traditional doctor. A doctor focuses on one species- humans, where veterinarians focus on a million different species.”
— Daniel Greenberg ’26
Neuroscientist Mallar Chakravarty presents data on brain development during his Sci-9 Club presentation.
Surprising Questions
The sessions follow a loose format: part presentation, part conversation. What stands out, visit after visit, is the calibre of the questions. “I’m always blown away,” says Ms. Hunter. “They’re learning about something genuinely complex for the first time, and they just confidently dig in. The researchers are sometimes astonished.”
That confidence is built long before a researcher walks into the class. By the time a neuroscientist or surgeon is at the front of the room, the instinct for students to engage is already there. Daniel saw it play out in an auditorium at the Montreal Neurological Institute’s Brain Bee, where St. George’s students were among the few in the crowd willing to ask questions mid-presentation.
“That’s what makes St. George’s different. If you don’t build the confidence to ask a question in front of your own classmates, you’re not going to build the confidence to ask it in front of a doctor or someone leading in their field,” says Daniel, who heads to Marianopolis next year to study health sciences, with an interest in neuroscience.
Dr. Teresa Rudkin guides two students through a suturing workshop using practice kits and pigskin.
Parent Involvement
The fact that nearly all the guest speakers have come through the parent community is not accidental. Parents bring a particular investment in the school’s culture, and it shows in how they show up not just prepared, but genuinely glad to be there.
“We are so grateful to all the parents for taking time out of their busy careers to offer this to our students. They do it so passionately.”
— Ms. Stephanie Blum, Science Teacher
A Culture of Science
The Sci-9 Club is one part of a broader science culture at the school. The Extreme Science Club lets Grade 7 students tackle big, hands-on experiments. A team of students travels annually to the Brain Bee at the Montreal Neurological Institute, and advanced science streams challenge students who want to delve further. Field trips take students into real environments to gather real data, including a water quality and ecology trip to Île Saint-Bernard in Châteauguay.
These experiences build scientific thinking. The Sci-9 Club shows students what real people do with science every day.
Next year will be its fourth, and interest among the Grade 9 cohort is strong. If a visit to a stem cell lab comes together, it will be a chance for them to step inside the research they have been hearing about.
Some of them will probably arrive early.
Past Speakers
2024 to 2025: Dr. Jessica Hutta, Veterinarian; Dr. Teresa Rudkin, Family Doctor; Dr. Christopher Labos, Cardiologist and Epidemiologist; Dr. Perry Gdalevitch, Plastic Surgeon; Dr. Gabriella Gobbi, Psychiatrist and Researcher; Dr. Cédric Yansouni, Infectious Disease Researcher; Dr. Audrey Juras and Dr. Sara Michelle Weinman, Family Medicine and Nutrition; Dr. Renee Schiff, Cardiologist (postponed).
2025 to 2026: Ludovic Mouttet, Stem Cell Researcher; Eric Carmichael, Neuroscientist; Mallar Chakravarty, Neuroscientist; Dr. Shannon Salvador, Gynaecologic Oncologist; Dr. Marie Gdalevitch, Orthopaedic Surgeon.
