Metster Profiles - MET Centre for Arts & Technology

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500-321 McDermot Ave., Winnipeg, MB, R3A 0A1| Phone: (204) 589-9854|

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MET Centre for Arts & Technology

Apr 01, 2023

No School Today

Community Parents Staff

Metster Profiles

Ethan, Grade 10 Who are you? I am a grade 10 student here at MCAT. I’m an ambitious person, and very set on my goal. I'm in the cadet program, enjoy the outdoors, socializing, and playing video games. What’s your project? It revolves around Bill C24, which is the Federal Government bill that seeks to restrict firearms. I chose this project because I grew up around firearms. I want to educate people on the bill, how the proposal will impact people, and maybe propose solutions. I feel that it is important to have a variety of perspectives, and I want to explore and present those perspectives through my research and Exhibition in June. What’s your internship? This year I attend MICE (Met Innovation Centre for Entrepreneurship) which is a Met School entrepreneurship program run out of North Forge. At MICE I am learning about how to start my own business. I’ve also explored my passion for aviation. As part of this learning I have reached out to a number of businesses and organizations connected to this, such as flying schools. I’m currently exploring the opportunity for interning at MP Rachel Dancho’s constituency office. I know that Ms. Dancho has been speaking out against Bill C24, and would like to spend time there learning about the work of an MP and how advocacy for and against legislation works. Working with Ms. Dancho would connect to my school project this year. How have you grown since coming to MCAT? I’ve grown in a lot of ways that at first I didn't think was important. One of those ways is in communication. I’ve learnt how to pick up the phone and communicate with adults. I’ve also gained confidence, particularly in my writing, which I struggled with before. I like working closely with my advisor Niall to support this growth. Having the ability to have more choice in my learning has been really beneficial - I’ve been able to push myself academically in areas that I’m interested in. What do you want to do? A big reason I wanted to come to MCAT was to pursue my career goals. I want to enter the Canadian Armed Forces as a helicopter pilot by enrolling in the Royal Military College of Canada. This summer I can get my glider license, and next year my power pilot license allowing me to fly real planes. At MCAT I can learn more about aviation and people in the field which will give me a massive advantage over those who are not able to have these experiences in high school. I have already made tons of connections. I know what I want to do in life, so this school has been a really good way for me to reach my goals.
Gabi, Grade 11 Who are you? I am a grade 11 student in Steph’s advisory. My main interests are in STEM (Science/Technology/Engineering/Mathematics), but I have interest in arts and history too. What’s your project? My current project is around the question of ‘How does pharmaceutical pollution impact the environment?’ I’m specifically interested in anti-depressants, antibiotics and painkillers getting into the water system. As you can imagine, the residue these drugs leave behind have significant impacts on ecosystems, so I want to know how the active ingredients impact water and wildlife. I will undertake this research through my internship, local experts, and scientific journals. This work is important for a lot of reasons, but one reason is that many youth are taking medications and so they should be aware of the impacts of what happens after they consume them. What’s your internship? My internship is at Tache Pharmacy in the compounding lab. I primarily work with pharmacy technicians, making creams, capsules and suspensions. I take basic power ingredients and measure, mix and prepare them for handing out to patients. An example of what I have made is acetaminophen - more commonly known as tylenol - in large batches, to make up for the shortage of children’s tylenol in pharmacies. I also make medications for cats and dogs. Did you know that cats and dogs can take antidepressants and antianxiety medications? How have you grown since starting at MCAT? I’ve definitely grown. The Met School has pushed me out of my shell, primarily socially. MCAT forces me to talk to adults more than I would have had the chance to do before. Now I’m used to talking to adults who are doing work I’m interested in and have the confidence to continue to do this. I have also grown academically. The focus for me now is less on the percentages - I’m less concerned with the number on my report card - and more on individual growth. What do you want to do? I have a general plan. I’ve held an interest in science for a while. When I was younger I did ‘science experiments' with water in the bathroom - testing variables (though I didn’t know this at the time). Once I graduate I want to get a B.Sc. and apply to medical school, to work towards becoming a surgeon. That's the plan for now, but it’s subject to change. I know that I want to be a scientist though.
Mohini, Grade 12 Who are you? I am a grade 12 student here on Treaty 1 territory. I’m interested in social work, advocacy and through my project work I try to engage through a lens of reconciliation. Reconciliation means to me first educating yourself, unpacking biases, addressing them, and seeing how you can contribute to the community. What’s your project? I want to know how community engagement can benefit the lives of youth and/or at risk youth. I will undertake research through my internship (see below), reading, talking to my mentors and experts in the community. There is a lot of researching and listening. What’s your internship? I have a couple of internships. Firstly, I am part of a program called ‘Music Equals’ which partners me with a mentor undertaking a musical theater class at an inner-city elementary school in Winnipeg. As part of this internship I interact and support these students, acknowledge that they have lots of different needs and talents. This work involves lots of relationship building. I also take the Dynamics of the Inner City class taught by Mitch Bourbonniere through the University of Winnipeg. The class highlights themes around poverty, MMIW, traditional Indigenous values. It exposes me to academic writing accompanied with experiences working in, with and for the community. We get to go on community walks listening to those in the community. As I want to go into Social Work, it has taught me that listening is a really important part of this work. Lastly I participate in what’s called a “Main Street Healing Walk”. Every Tuesday and Thursday morning myself and other volunteers assess the needs of unhoused people. We hand out food, water, warm clothes, and hygiene products. It’s healing to converse with people that are otherwise ignored, they help me just as much as I help them. How have you grown since you have come to MCAT? I’ve always been an independent person. At MCAT I’ve been offered opportunities, but I’ve needed to get myself out of my comfort zone to be able in order to challenge myself. If I can fill my school day helping others, I feel really fulfilled. I’ve set boundaries in the past, but I’ve not felt fulfilled when I’ve done this. I see myself in some of those I work with; I didn't have that support growing up, so I’ve needed to access those opportunities in order to be that presence. What do you want to do? I want to be someone who others feel that they can come to. All of my mentors are people like that and I look up to them. One of my mentors, Mitch, is my biggest supporter, and I want to be more like him. I want to be a social worker, not necessarily under CFS, but I do want to work with youth. I have a desire to teach too. I want to do a lot of things, but in the immediate future I plan on entering the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Manitoba.
Nahum, Grade 10 Who are you? I was born in Mexico City and moved to Canada in 2013. I have lived most of my life in Canada, but I try to retain my Mexican roots. I like history, biology, and learning about humans within the ecosystem. I guess you could say I’m a bit of a nerd: people say I know a lot of deep information and obscure facts about history, geopolitics and the natural world. What’s your project? This year I am working to host an event called ‘Heritage for All’, where people can come and learn about the history of our city and architecture. It will have a specific focus on settler and Indigenous relations, in order to provide a full picture. We want the event to be interactive and open for all people, regardless of knowledge or interest to gain something from it. My role is specifically to design workshops, schedule the day, and invite other organizations and people to the event. It will be held in May at the Millennium Centre on Main Street, which is itself a heritage site… What’s your internship? Related to my project, I intern at Heritage Winnipeg. The mandate of this organization is to preserve and restore places of significance in Winnipeg. This includes outdoor spaces and buildings that are of historical importance to our city. It is tied to environmentalism, as restoring old buildings is more sustainable than tearing down and rebuilding. An example of this would be MCAT, which is an older heritage building that is being repurposed as a school. My school-based project on Heritage for All is one that Heritage Winnipeg has tasked me with. How have you grown since coming to MCAT? Alot I would say. Before coming here I was less expressive and confident in myself. I really appreciate the opportunities I’ve had here to pursue my passions. This is because of how this school gives space for students to share their voice and search out their interests, which unfortunately does not happen in all schools. Examples of opportunities I’ve had here include having an internship that I am really interested in and gaining school credits for this. What do you want to do? I want to be a historian or even an archaeologist, but something related to learning about the past. I am planning on attending post-secondary, and looking at a history professor, or working in a museum as a curator. My next steps after this year will be to reach out to experts or those with similar passions to me to look at how to work towards this career path. Being an MCAT student allows me to see those things first hand while at high school. I think being at MCAT will put me ahead of others at a young age for working towards this goal.
Rex, Grade 9 Who are you? I am a queer artist living in Winnipeg, obsessed with animals, video games and social sciences. I live with my two cats, a dog and a grumpy lizard. What’s your project? This year I am working on a documentary that surrounds the issue of how ableism presents itself on the internet, specifically ableism against those who are neurodivergent. I am hoping to interview neurodivergent people online and in-person to ask them about their experiences online, specifically about whether they have ever been bullied online because of their special interests. What’s your internship? This semester I am enrolled in Tech Hub, a video game development course. I am hoping to become a game developer that focuses on environment design or UI design. Through Tech Hub I will try to develop skills on Blender and become a better artist. How have you grown this year? My social skills are way better. I’m feeling more happy here, as I’m less stifled than at my last school. People at MCAT are way more curious and kind. MCAT has given me more opportunities through school-based projects (student inquiry) and more open communication between our principal, teachers and students. I believe they take bullying way more seriously here. It’s nice that MCAT is composed of people who are like me - those who are outcasts and artistic. What do you want to do? I want to eventually get into Brock University in Ontario. Brock has a lot of interesting courses and also has an equestrian team. I am also wanting to be a psychologist, gynecologist or video game designer. In the short term I want to learn how to program in C# and C++. I’m working on developing some games right now with my Dad.
Toby, Grade 9 Who are you? I am really interested in aeronautics, I build RC airplanes all the time, I’m a pilot in training at Saint Andrews airport, I also am interested in sustainability, and I love engineering airplanes to reduce their climate impact. What’s your project? This year I am interested in whether blimps can make transportation cheaper, greener and more reliable. My project idea is to create a remote control blimp that I will test for carrying weight, resilience in a multitude of weather conditions, speeds and altitudes. Blimps are a viable product because they dont require speed to stay afloat making them a great candidate for electrification. The book The Ministry for the Future really piqued my interests in blimps. I have recently connected with Dr. Barry Prentice from University of Manitoba, who runs a company called Buoyant Airships International to support me with this investigation. What’s your internship? Alongside working with Barry Prentice, I am enrolled in Tech Hub, which is a videogame development internship at New Media Manitoba. I registered for this internship so that I can hone my skills in coding and aerodynamic simulations, which I hope to use to hone my blimp design for my project. I have some experience coding in Unity and I hope Tech Hub can really take my blimps to the next level. How have you grown this year? Other than three inches in height… I have gained a lot of knowledge of the downtown core and connected with a lot of professionals in fields that I am interested in, such as aerospace and sustainability. I would also say that my self-management skills have improved - I have completed more tasks and I have been able to use time at school to work on what interests me. What do you want to do? My goal in life is to live on an airship growing my own food. I have this fully thought through, with duckweed, solar panels, and a bit of hydrogen I know it’ll be a sight to behold. MCAT can help me achieve these goals by connecting me with professionals, resources and knowledge that can teach me how to perfect the design of my blimps, as well as the time required to produce them.