Peter Doherty Awards for Excellence in STEM Education

After winning the award, Joanna completed an undergraduate degree in Actuarial Studies (the application of probability and statistics within the insurance and finance industries) at the University of Melbourne.

Actuaries critique and manage the financial risks faced by individuals and organisations to plan effectively for the future.

Joanna's goal is to be a leader in applying statistics and probability to the investments industry to enhance business outcomes.

The award encouraged David to pursue his interests in STEM education. In addition, David used the funds to attend and present sessions at the 2^nd International World STEM Conference held at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver in 2014. Here, David was able to showcase the STEM initiatives being undertaken by the Department of Education.

The following year, David took up a position as a Principal Education Advisor (Australian Curriculum) where he promoted STEM in schools across the department's Metropolitan region.

Although David is now retired, he continues to provide teacher professional development in STEM and leads the delivery Springfield Central State High School's annual STEM program.

The award encouraged Aleisha to pursue a career in environmental science, where they discovered a passion for biodiversity and ecology.

Aleisha works as an undergraduate ecologist at an infrastructure consulting firm. In this role, Aleisha uses their understanding of fauna, flora, ecological communities and ecosystems to inform the planning, design and implementation of nature-based solutions for infrastructure projects.

Aleisha is also a mentor for CSIRO's Young Indigenous Women's STEM Academy, and hopes to continue working in this capacity into the future.

The award encouraged Harrison to attend university and receive further education in science.

After graduation, Harrison completed a Bachelor of Biotechnology (Honours) majoring in drug design and development. Harrison then completed a PhD, where he developed delivery systems for peptide-based and antidrug vaccines.

Harrison now works as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Institute for Molecular Bioscience. His research is currently focused on the development of peptide therapeutics for a range of conditions (from pain to antimicrobials) as well as the development of molecular probes to further the understanding of human biology.