Your STEM Education Specialists..
Inspiring young minds and fostering a love of learning
At STEM Zone, our mission is to connect with the community and empower students and educators to foster their creativity and curiosity of the world around them.
We are your local STEM Education Specialists that value learning and offer every opportunity for young people to grow and extend themselves in a safe environment.
With over 30 years of combined experience as STEM educators, co-founders Julia and Carissa are passionate about nurturing the next generation of innovators with our expert knowledge and teaching practices. Our unique, dynamic, and engaging programs are designed to spark interest, challenge young minds, and provide hands-on learning experiences that make STEM concepts come alive.
We have a proven track record of igniting curiosity, fostering creativity, and empowering students to reach their full potential.
STEM Zone is more than just an educational provider;
we are a community hub for STEM learning.
We offer a variety of workshops, events, and resources for students, and for parents and educators to support their children's STEM education.
We also partner with local businesses and organisations to promote STEM careers and provide students with real-world learning experiences.
Julia & Carissa
Founders of STEM Zone.
Proud advocates for Women In STEM
Yes We Are!
"From students of science, to scientists, to science teachers, to entrepreneurs with a STEM Education business...
these two must really be into science!"
Carissa & Julia
Their stories so far...
Carissa has always had an intense curiosity for the world around her, an adventurous spirit and a passion for big goals! Carissa is a strong advocate for women in STEM, and especially rural women and girls, having lived in rural Victoria all her life. She is very excited to be sharing her knowledge and experience and to be increasing our young people's engagement in Science.
Carissa graduated from RMIT with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Medical Laboratory Science.
She spent 12 years in pathology in a range of departments including microbiology, biochemistry and veterinary medicine. Additionally, she was the research and development scientist in the molecular biology department developing new diagnostic tests for human and animal disease using the latest molecular biology techniques.
After completing a Master of Teaching, Carissa taught VCE Science at St Paul’s Anglican Grammar School where she was Head of Science for 5 years, before co-founding STEM Zone in 2021.
She is a former VCAA assessor and co-author of A+ Biology Notes published in 2022.
While having her family, Carissa was able to fulfil one of her joys which is serving her community. She was the Secretary and the President of the Poowong Kindergarten for 6 years which enabled her to spearhead fundraising efforts so that the children could have a wide variety of experiences to aid in their development. On top of this, she conducted many science sessions with the kindergarten and local Primary School while completing her Masters of Teaching. It was at this time that she realised that Science expertise is not in abundance in rural Victoria and young girls in the country need more role models in this area. Plus, she LOVES inspiring scientific curiosity in young people and helping Year 12s achieve their academic goals.
She loves everything about travelling from experiencing different cultures to tasting local delicacies. This has led her to many countries around the world with some of her highlights being able to explore Egypt and Peru. Loving the outdoors, Carissa has hiked, kayaked, canyoned and ridden bikes all over Australia. This sense of adventure also led her to achieve one of her biggest long term goals to climb Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania!!
This passion for travel saw her take an amazing group of students to explore Indonesia on a World Challenge in 2018 where they climbed Mt Bromo and Mt Ijen as well as helping plant trees in the forest to combat deforestation and build a building for a sustainable school.
So life changing was this experience for her students, the trip quadrupled in size for the planned 2020 expedition to Malaysia 'Insert COVID interruptions here'.
In 2018, she led a student group to Indonesia where they learnt about the challenges facing the local environment and planted trees in the rainforest to help combat deforestation.
Julia is addicted to learning! She has always been inspired by nature, science, adventure and philosophy. She found her calling in education and revels in inspiring young people to stretch their big brain muscles and take on challenges to be the best version of themselves.
She is a proud advocate for women in STEM.
Julia studied her Bachelor of Science at Monash University with majors in Human Physiology, Zoology and Chemistry.
She was a research assistant for the WWF Marine Reserve in Trieste, Italy where she used SCUBA to collect and analyse data on the local marine ecosystems.
She also worked for Monash University in their International Student Recruitment division where she assisted thousands of students follow their study ambitions in Australia.
She then completed the Graduate Diploma in Education (Secondary) and began her teaching career in 2009. She has been teaching VCE Science for over 12 years and has held the positions of Head of Science and Head of Year 12 at St Paul's Anglican Grammar School until the end of 2019.
Julia was the co-founder of the Marine Biology Tour to Ningaloo Reef, WA, where she led students on a discovery into the life of a Marine Biologist and an exploration of the reefs with SCUBA diving and snorkelling with Whale Sharks.
Julia then worked at Drouin Secondary College for 2 years until she co-founded STEM Zone in 2021.
She is a former VCAA Biology Assessor and marks exams for schools across Melbourne.
Sweat & Tears
& thankfully no Blood...
"We want to start a business, and we want to do it from the ground up.."
Challenge Accepted!
Just Some of Our Valued Clients..
