When the idea for a youth-led, student-focused organization was birthed from a conversation between two friends on New Year’s Day of 2016, it was clear that a strong team would be needed to bring it to life. There needed to be a distribution of expertise that supported the fields of study they sought to emphasize. With that in mind, Renard Lewis and Arlene Hayes almost immediately began reaching out to other Grenadian friends and colleagues with backgrounds in Science, Technology, Engineering, Architecture and Mathematics to round out the group that would start Grenadian STEAM. Within a couple months, the board was set with 5 team leaders and a group administrator, ready to influence changes in the way career development was approached in Grenada.
Over time, the executive board of the organization has changed a couple times but this year, in September of 2021, to commemorate GrenSTEAM’s 5-year anniversary the original team sat down to reminisce about the early days and share their reasons for joining and continuing to support the mission. You can listen to the full conversation on our Pathways podcast episode 10 of season 2.
In this post we’ll share the full bios of the founding directors, but for their stories, advice and individual experiences, be sure to check out the podcast.
Arlene Hayes - Co-founder, Original Leader of Team Architecture & current President
Arlene is an obsessive planner, adventure-seeker and a burgeoning polymath. She holds a professional Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the Illinois Institute of Technology where she also pursued a Minor in Construction Management. She has over 5 years of experience in construction planning and management, having worked with general contractors and owners on a variety of commercial building projects, both in the Greater Chicago Area and at home in Grenada.
Arlene’s strong belief in knowledge sharing and giving back, blended with her knack for coordinating team processes, has led her to work with numerous student groups and professional organizations during her Undergraduate years, and to ultimately develop Grenadian STEAM to help share her experiences, and those of hundreds of other Grenadians, with students at home.
Currently, Arlene is flexing her management capacity, filling roles in both the construction development and IT management spaces. When not working or trying to find ways to further GrenSTEAM’s reach, you can find Arlene practicing the keyboard, catching up with good friends, or trying out a new made-up recipe at home.
Renard Lewis - Co-Founder, Original Leader of Team Science & Founding Vice-President
Renard was born in Grenada, graduated from the Grenada Boys’ Secondary School in 2009 and from T.A. Marryshow Community College (TAMCC) in 2011. Following TAMCC, he completed a B.Sc. in Molecular Biology with a minor in Plant Sciences (First Class Honours) from the University of West Indies (UWI), Mona Campus in Kingston, Jamaica. Whilst at UWI, Renard was the course representative for a number of his courses, President of the undergraduate branch of the UWI Mona Biology Student Association (2014-2016) and a student tutor within the Department of Chemistry’s Peer Led Programme. He then co-founded Grenadian STEAM with Arlene Hayes in his final year and became the organization’s first Vice-President, as well as the first leader of Team Science. Renard’s balance of academics and extracurricular activities allowed him to be selected as a Commonwealth Caribbean Rhodes Scholarship Finalist for two consecutive years.
After his time in Jamaica, Renard went on to earn an M.Sc. in Genetics of Human Disease (Distinction) at the University College London (UCL). His M.Sc. thesis, done at the UCL’s Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, involved characterizing a novel genetic structural variant, which was implicated in growth restriction phenotypes in patients. Currently, he is a PhD student at ETH Zurich, within the Institute of Biochemistry and his research involves understanding how mammals establish and maintain their 3D genome organization. Since starting his PhD, Renard has been selected as a member of the Chromatin, Epigenetics and Gene Expression course (2019) from the prestigious Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) in New York, thus becoming the second Grenadian to be admitted to CSHL, and the first Grenadian to be admitted to his specific course. Upon completion of his PhD, Renard hopes to become a professor and establish his very own research group. Renard credits all of his achievements thus far to the unwavering support and encouragement of his family, his amazing circle of friends and the impactful teachers and lecturers who mentored and guided him along the way.
Renard recently started an online blog along with some of his PhD colleagues to bring clarity to the misinformation that is being spread about COVID-19 and other public health issues. Check them out at www.biodecoded.net or follow them on social media @BioDecoded
Renee Thomas - Founding Team Administrator, Current Vice-President
Renee holds a B.Sc. in Biology and a Master’s of Public Health in Health Management and Policy. She is currently an Instructor in the Dept. of Public Health and Preventative Medicine at the St. George’s University and, along with her partner, has co-founded and developed a startup tech company, KariBites, which currently provides food delivery service in Grenada, Antigua and St. Vincent.
Daren Redhead - Original Leader of Team Technology, Founding Team Analyst
Daren was born and raised in the Caribbean island of Grenada. After graduating from the Presentation Brother’s College, he majored in Natural Science at the T.A Community College. His love for working with his hands, combined with his fascination with technology, drove him to study Electrical Engineering Technology in Canada where he graduated with Honours from a 3-year advanced diploma program at Algonquin College.
Daren currently works as a Detection and Controls Technician for a Fire and Safety Company in Grenada called RFS, formerly known as Regional Fire and Security. His main specialty is Fire Alarm and Fire Suppression Systems but he also deals with other services in the electrical department such as Burglar Alarm Systems, Access Control and CCTV Surveillance Systems. Over his 5 years working for the company, Daren has recognized a lack in Grenada as it relates to fire safety protocols in businesses and public spaces. This has created a passion in him to help develop Fire Safety awareness and to implement systems in various establishments on island that protect the property as well as the occupants against fire risks.
Besides fire and safety, Daren also loves sports and outdoor activities. This includes football, tennis, table tennis and playing pool. While in Canada he was an avid mountain biker, often riding the numerous trails in the Rocky Mountains during his summer breaks from school.
Shennel Telesford - Founding Leader of Team Mathematics, Original Funding Director
Shennel is a teaching assistant in the area of algebra at the National University of the South (Universidad Nacional del Sur) in Bahía Blanca, Argentina, where she also obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Research Mathematics. Her love for mathematics started off because of an incentive from her mom in primary school and grew more and more, making it an effortless subject for her during secondary school before she finally realized a couple years later that it was a passion. During her studies, Shennel was exposed to many areas of mathematics (yes, math isn’t just about numbers). A great part of this exposure was as a result of the annual math congress hosted by the Argentina Mathematical Union (UMA) . Shennel has attended 6 congresses in total and they served as an excellent tool for a future glimpse into many mathematical areas of study. Algebra and statistics have always been her preferred area of study. Currently, she is pursuing a formation in the area of economics as a stepping stone into Actuarial Science.
Avery Brown - Original Leader of Team Engineering, Founding PR Chair, Current Team Admin
Avery was born on the island of Barbados, then moved to Grenada where he was raised through adolescence. He graduated from Beacon High School and then went on to get an Associate’s Degree in Natural Science from the T.A. Marryshow Community College. Avery then went on to get a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. Immediately following Undergrad, he pursued and completed a PhD at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts in Chemical Engineering.
Throughout his education, Avery was actively involved in several organizations including the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the National Society of Black Engineers, serving as a Regional Leader with the latter. Avery currently works for the Dow Chemical Company in Core Research and Design as a spectroscopy subject matter expert.