SPEAKER_03 0:00

There was a point where I was like, I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 0:02

Right?

SPEAKER_03 0:03

I don't know if I can do this. I'm younger than everybody. And my mom was like, you can do it.

SPEAKER_02 0:13

So I'm doing it.

SPEAKER_01 1:00

Your host, Ruth Devonay Southhaul. I'm so glad you're here. And if you have not already, please subscribe, like, and share. And don't forget to hit that notification button so that you all can be notified whenever a new episode drops. Hey, I also want to remind you that this podcast is created for you. It's created for those who are embracing peace on their journey in the pursuit of purpose. So today I'm so excited to introduce to you a woman of faith, family, and focus who's grounded in purpose and driven by passion with a heart for empowering the next generation. She has dedicated her career to creating spaces where young women can see themselves as scientists, as the manager of operations and programs with Girls for Science. She works to make science accessible, engaging, and inspiring for girls across communities. Guided by her faith and the values instilled in her by her family, she approaches her work with compassion, excellence, and vision. Right now, she's especially excited about developing a marine biology module for winter 2026. Bring a new wave of exploration to the program and showing students that there's a whole world beneath the surface waiting to be studied. She brings warmth, curiosity, and creativity into everything she does, always finding joy and learning and sharing that spark with others. Please welcome to Becoming Serene, my friend. Also my niece, Sandrine Davis.

SPEAKER_03 2:46

Welcome, son. Thank you for having me, Auntie.

SPEAKER_01 2:50

It's all of my pleasure, my darling. So, little behind the scenes, real quickly, let me just tell you all that this interview evidently is long overdue. But I never would have even thought about it until your mom was like, you know what? You should talk to your girl about Girls for Science. And as soon as she said, I was like, done. Like, I totally agree. Because, you know, education is near and dear to my heart, but just learning and understanding the benefits of STEM programs are especially important. So go ahead and tell them how long we've known one another, and then we'll get into because I I usually start things off and do all the talking. I start off and I do all the talking, then I get running on a tangent, and then they're like, Are we gonna hear from the other person? So whatever. I'm gonna sit back and listen to you.

SPEAKER_03 3:45

We've known each other pretty much my whole life. Yes. Um, you know, your aunties are your mom's friends. Um and now we're all family, that's how that works. Yes. But I've been a part of Girls for Science for 11 years. I started off as a volunteer while my sister was a student, and then when I was 23, there was an opening for a coordinator position. So I became a coordinator and then was my sister's teacher. She has since graduated, and now I'm my youngest sister's teacher. And earlier this year a position came up for the manager of operations to run all three locations, and I have accepted that.

SPEAKER_01 4:30

Amazing. So tell my friends and myself exactly what Girls for Science is and what you all do.

SPEAKER_03 4:38

Okay, yeah. So na uh Girls for Science is a nonprofit STEM program where we teach girls 10 to 18 the different uh subjects in STEM, and right now we follow the word STEM. So in the winter we do science, in the spring we do technology, then we go to engineering, and then we do math. Um yesterday actually was our last math class where we were teaching financial literacy and money matters. We had some venture capitalists come in from New York and they got to teach the girls, and one of them even gave all of the students on the field trip a$25 gift card, which was really amazing. We did not expect that at all.

SPEAKER_01 5:17

So wonderful. I love that. When I teach financial literacy to my students, I give them three dollars. I'm like, save one, spend one, and invest one. Like, there you go. So yeah, never$25.

SPEAKER_03 5:31

But anyway, it was a complete surprise. We thought he was just, you know, he said he wanted to bring gifts, and we thought um his name is Christian Horn. Um, he has his own company called Diamond. We thought he was just giving us notebooks, right? And then he pops out with gift cards, and then he had extra and he gave them to the staff.

SPEAKER_01 5:50

Come on. So everybody come volunteer for the goodies.

SPEAKER_02 5:54

Yes, come volunteer. Oh, yes, we love volunteers.

SPEAKER_01 5:57

I most certainly should and shall. Um so what is your mission with Girls for Science?

SPEAKER_03 6:06

My mission personally is I really wish that I there was a program like this when I was younger. I was a nerd. Um really big science nerd. Both my grandparents were science teachers, and my godparents were big in math, so I kind of get it honest, and I would have loved to have an extra program like this. So I just really want to get the word out and let the other girls know like there's something out there because there's so many programs geared more towards males, and our program is focused on girls 10 to 18 because that's where studies show that they lose interest in those things if they're not introduced to that.

SPEAKER_01 6:51

Most definitely. I love everything about that because I do and have taught middle schoolers, and you know, it's every once in a while they are able to get their hands on STEM products or programs and different things, and as a matter of fact, when they do they love it, and then they're gone. Right. And there's nothing like for a progression, so I do love that. So again, please contact and we're gonna leave all of your handles and all of different ways that they can sign up, register, um, share with a friend, and all of those things, most definitely. So, also when it comes to you personally, how have your um your hobbies and your creativity, how do you spend that and add that to what it is that you're doing now?

SPEAKER_03 7:41

I find things that I like. So, like I said, I've always been really big into science. So during COVID, I actually wrote a lesson plan on anthropology.

SPEAKER_01 7:52

Yeah, because that's what we all did in our spare time. Right. Everybody wrote a lesson plan on anthropology. Not even the teachers that were supposed to probably do that.

SPEAKER_03 8:01

No, so I loved the show Bones, and I took a forensic anthropology class in college, and we were looking for subjects to do during COVID, and I just volunteered to do an anthropology lesson.

SPEAKER_01 8:20

Oh my god. Bones was good though. Bones was a great show. Really, really good.

SPEAKER_03 8:25

So I wrote a whole six-week lesson plan on anthropology with like a focus on forensic anthropology. And because it was COVID, we sent out like little fake skulls to everybody so I could teach on so I could teach in on camera that uh we had a virtual field trip to Cahokia, the mounds down in southern Illinois, which is like one of the largest still standing like Native American civilizations from from before. Yeah, it was really fun.

SPEAKER_01 9:03

See if your girls are at home talking like this, I'm just saying, in their spare time, they're writing lesson plans.

SPEAKER_03 9:14

Oh my god. Yeah, if after the school dance, your daughter is going home to watch the history channel under my leg.

SPEAKER_01 9:22

That's what I was doing. Oh my god. See, that's it. And she's this is just the tip, the very tip of an iceberg, honey. You all just don't understand. I already told her I'm gonna definitely have you back because it's gonna be so much we're gonna touch on.

SPEAKER_03 9:41

I just I'm full of random information.

SPEAKER_01 9:43

So if you have like a daughter that loves to look up random facts, and like take it to heart and memorize it, because I look it up, but I'm not gonna remember it to tell somebody. Oh my goodness. I love it. So, what's going on with the next module, and where is the inspiration behind that for the marine biology?

SPEAKER_03 10:07

So sometimes as we get new students, we do we do recycle lessons. Um and we did marine biology like right before COVID. And I know that we have a lot of younger students coming in now, and some of the older students spoke to me and they were like, let's we want to redo this. I had a coordinator talk to me about how when she was in school she made pens out of squid ink that could like write, and I was like, Oh, so we're totally doing marine biology. Yeah. Um, and so when we did it, we had sharks and we did shark dissections, which was really you mean real sharks? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:58

I was just like, you had shark pictures? No, what yeah, I did a pig and a frog.

SPEAKER_03 11:05

No, we took sharks, we we bought sharks really for the studio.

SPEAKER_01 11:10

I see how you're holding your hands. Yeah. What was the largest shark you all had?

SPEAKER_03 11:15

They were they were baby sharks.

SPEAKER_01 11:16

I'm sure, but still baby shark. You brought it up. You brought it up. That'd be so great to integrate that song right there, Jacob. I'm just saying.

SPEAKER_03 11:27

We had, yeah, so we did that. It was really cool. Um smell was not great as with all dissections, as you know.

SPEAKER_01 11:36

But I'm still trying to think about going through the layers of a shark, because remember, like I did a pig and a frog.

SPEAKER_03 11:42

I believe we used dog sharks. Okay. So they're not that big. Okay. Um, it was a lot, you know, because again, we work with 10-year-olds and 18-year-olds. Right. So we you know, you have to pair the fifth graders with a senior kind of thing to make sure that things don't go wrong.

SPEAKER_01 12:02

But so nice.

SPEAKER_03 12:04

It's really, it's a really great program.

SPEAKER_01 12:06

Wow, this is fascinating. I want to be 10 to 18 again. So did I.

SPEAKER_03 12:12

Like, I didn't, like I said, I found out about it when I was 19. Like, why couldn't I get it the year before?

SPEAKER_01 12:17

Lady, please. Okay, so in doing this and especially watching, being a mentor, then a teacher, and then just moving up in the ranks because it's been speaking to you. Like you're it's just calling you. I I'm one of those people. Things have happened to me the same way. So, how have you seen yourself change or grow? What have you seen about yourself through this?

SPEAKER_03 12:42

I think that I'm definitely becoming a better leader. Um I was always a trainer, no matter what I was doing. Uh when I was a hostess or a waitress, I could train the new hires, when I worked in blood banking, I was a team lead and I ran the facility. So I've always loved being in like a leadership role, and I got that honestly, as I am the oldest sister. Um we m we tend to mom everybody. But um I think seeing seeing the students grow up has been really great, and I it's something that I wanted to continue to be a part of because I've since found myself becoming the adult that I said I would never be, which is my babies are growing up. So having them come in at 10 and then getting to go to their graduations or their quincenaras is like so amazing that you have that much of an impact on them, even though it's six Saturdays once a quarter. You really like grow to love these kids and you know this as a teacher. So they're your babies. Yeah. And I just I love seeing seeing the growth of seeing them come in super shy. I like to say first day of class, everybody reads, so it's on the PowerPoint who can read, and watching them like come out of their shell has been so great. So I just love to be a part of that.

SPEAKER_01 14:23

I'm so glad you brought up all of those things because I wanted to also ask how has community and mentorship and your purpose shaped your journey of where you thought you'd be, what you thought you would be doing to now.

SPEAKER_03 14:36

I definitely thought I would be somewhere else. Um I've always loved medicine, so that's why I was into blood banking. But you know, your journey sometimes takes a turn, and this opportunity opened up for me, and I really love this program. So I took it.

SPEAKER_01 14:58

Right, most definitely, and you know what is so amazing and empowering is that you love it and you took it, but all of the lives that you get to affect, and all the little girls, like you said, you get to see their progress, but you get to impact them in a way that they would not have been impacted without your presence. I mean, your mom is there, and so I know who you are is mostly because of my fabulous friend, and then your younger sisters that, like, they were gonna get the whole effect of you anyway in your presence, but it's different as a leader, like you said, that you know, you have to be confident enough to say and courageous enough to say, you know what, yeah, I will do this because it does stretch us.

SPEAKER_03 15:45

It does. There was a point where I was like, I don't know, right? I don't know if I can do this. I'm younger than everybody. And my mom was like, you can do it. So I'm doing it.

SPEAKER_01 16:00

Yes, and I'm sure absolutely fabulously. So, my dear, what else would you like to see? What's your vision?

SPEAKER_03 16:11

I I have big, big plans coming up. I pretty much I pretty much have all of next year planned out.

SPEAKER_01 16:20

Um Wow. Wow.

SPEAKER_03 16:24

I did write the lesson plans. Um, I need to go through and like actually make the PowerPoints, but I have the bones of lesson plans for all four modules for next year.

SPEAKER_01 16:37

That is so awesome. Skill trips included. Come on, 10 to 18 year olds, like little girls, young ladies, young women, for real. Even if you, I'm gonna tell the truth, as a teacher, even if you aren't interested in STEM just yet, you may still just be wondering what you're interested in. This is your time to actually get involved and surround yourself with people who are doing something super positive, but more importantly, something that you can do to jumpstart you into and the most exciting career and time of your life. Tell me about the career options.

SPEAKER_03 17:20

Well, I'll tell you one thing is that graduating seniors that let us know that have like proof of uh acceptance into a four-year college or into a community college or a trade school, they all get a thousand dollars.

SPEAKER_01 17:39

What?

SPEAKER_03 17:40

Yep. If you are a graduating senior, as long as you've completed eight sessions year throughout your high school, so that's two years of classes. Wow is when you graduate, we do a big end of the year celebration in August. And everybody gets the big the big check. They get the big check. They get the big check.

SPEAKER_01 18:05

Big thousand dollar scholarship check. Wow. Another reason I wish I could do it. I do.

SPEAKER_03 18:13

And it's free. It's free. I want to stress. Yes, we did not talk about how important it is. It's free ninety nine. You don't pay for anything, you don't pay for field trips, you don't pay for anything except for free knowledge. Yeah, free knowledge. The only thing you pay for is to replace your t-shirt. Um or if you want to get other spirit wear. But other than that, everything is free.

SPEAKER_01 18:37

Oh my goodness. Oh, okay. Finally, my last thought will be what is it that you like you already shared? You wish there was some like this around when you were uh coming along and growing up. But what is it that you want to share with the young ladies, even if the young ladies are not watching, their moms, their aunts, their grandmas? Like, get your child, like for real, get the girl out of the house. Let's start there. Yeah, let's get them out of the house.

SPEAKER_03 19:11

It's only two hours. Yes. It's two hours from 10 to 2 on Saturdays, and it's six Saturdays a quarter.

unknown 19:19

Three locations.

SPEAKER_03 19:21

And I have three locations. I promise you.

SPEAKER_01 19:23

What are they?

SPEAKER_03 19:24

They are Malcolm X, the Chicago High School for Arch Agricultural Sciences, and then JJC.

SPEAKER_01 19:32

Oh wow. So the Joliet Jr. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 19:35

It's Joliet Junior College.

SPEAKER_01 19:36

Oh my goodness. I'm sitting up here trying to think as if I didn't have anything. No, don't call me because I'm like, I was like, can I get a van or girl? But my students are on you.

SPEAKER_00 19:48

Yes, but my students are students are like, Miss Setho, can you come get me?

SPEAKER_01 19:54

I promise you, I'll try to figure this out. Because this is so important. It is. And you know what? I was just sharing on last evening. I went to the Chicago Urban League Gailey, you already know. And I was sitting there and they were talking about I did not.

SPEAKER_03 20:10

She said she was gonna look for you.

SPEAKER_01 20:11

Really? We have to connect.

SPEAKER_03 20:13

I showed her your picture at class after class yesterday because she told me she was going. And I was like, Oh, my aunt's gonna be there. And I showed her your picture, and she's like, Oh, she'll be easy to find because you guys look alike. Oh, yeah. From when we went to dinner on Friday night.

SPEAKER_01 20:28

Then we uh you have to show me a picture of her, and I well, I will not know if I saw her. I'm not one of those people that I remember somebody in the crowd unless they sat at the table with me and passed the the food.

SPEAKER_03 20:38

Yeah, I literally was like, Oh, my aunt's there, and she's also natural blonde, like me.

SPEAKER_01 20:42

Right, because we are natural blondes, period. But the food was amazing there. What was I about saying? Oh, that the CEO of the Chicago Urban League was talking about um your love language, and she said, What is your love language? So, you know, I'm all about assessments in love languages. We talk about that all the time. However, she is like, but your love language for your community, like what is it that you're doing to show love for your community? I'm like, man, I feel like it was such not just a slap because I do a lot, but I I you know I do a lot because I like to stay active, but I still feel I could be more impactful. It doesn't have to be run a whole program, but just just participate, volunteer, just do your part of the service. It most certainly is, and it reminded me of when I had a conversation with Roland Burrs, uh, not Roland Burrs, he was there last night, Roland Martin. But shout out to Roland Burrs too. But Roland Martin this summer, and he was like, if everybody would just do something, one thing that will help the whole collective move forward and grow as a people. So, yes, I'm loving. Girls for Science. Why? Because I love that my girls are running the Girls for Science. So thank you so much for this conversation. It turned into something that I didn't even imagine that it would. And that would be probably me showing up and doing my part.

SPEAKER_02 22:16

I can't wait to see you there in your pink sweatshirt.

SPEAKER_01 22:19

Okay, pink sweatshirt. Y'all already know I got enough pink, right? So let's do it.

SPEAKER_02 22:25

There's never too much pink.

SPEAKER_01 22:27

Let's do it. You know it is not. So, my darling, uh, last thing I'd have to ask is what motivates and inspires you to help you motivate and inspire others.

SPEAKER_03 22:39

That's a great question. I think it would be my family. Yeah, I don't. I come from a you gotta, we're gonna work it out no matter what it is. So whenever there is something hard or I'm struggling, you pray on it and then you keep it going. Because we had some, you know, we work with teenage girls, right? They have issues sometimes, and you have to be strong enough to let them know that they're strong enough to make it through those things.

SPEAKER_01 23:16

So true. That's true. I love that. And if not, you fake it till you make it. And then there's that. Because right, and they gotta learn it early. You gotta learn early, girl. Sometimes you just gotta fake it, and you have an amazing. I promise you, hush. But you have an amazing community, and I was um sharing again a couple of inside joke, now your business. Shout out to what a couple of days ago I shared how I was so honored to join you for dinner um and then meet yet another new friend because of that. Like, yeah, I am I am, I am still on such a high, not just because of the great food and the service, but the company. It was amazing.

SPEAKER_03 24:12

It was so endorphin high. I did not go to sleep until like after midnight.

SPEAKER_01 24:18

Well, girl, I had three desserts. So stop it, mind your business. We had four. We had four desserts. Shout out to Frank. Okay, Frank. Eddie Merlot and where we warn, Bill.

SPEAKER_04 24:35

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 24:37

I'll be back. I'm just I'm just saying, you're you're gonna get tired of it. We don't eat bad food. We do not. No. See, hang out with us at Girls for Science. You have to come through there.

SPEAKER_02 24:48

Yes. And then we'll do dinner afterwards the Mary Fun Mom dinner afterwards.

SPEAKER_01 24:53

Oh, yes. Join us. Hey, thank you guys so much for joining us once again for another episode of Becoming Serene, where you never know where the conversation is gonna take you. Literally, me, the host. Like, where am I going now? I'm going to join Girls for Science. I'm gonna act like I'm typically calm down. Calm down. Studio audience is like out of control right now.

SPEAKER_02 25:20

And you would think it's more than one.

SPEAKER_01 25:25

You all are absolutely amazing, and we could not do this without you. So once again, we we want to welcome you to join Sandrine and the Girls for Science by following all of her handles. Where can you find where can they find you?

SPEAKER_03 25:46

You can find me on LinkedIn at Sondrine Davis. Um, and then uh we'll have my email posted, and you can reach me on the Gmail. Uh, and then you can also find Girls for Science at Girlsfor Science athenumber 4.org. A registration for the marine biology module has opened as of today, and classes will start on January 24th, 2026.

SPEAKER_01 26:14

Let's get ready, let's go and let's grow. Why am I quoting Pastor Ray Bay? But why not? That's the truth. Yes, you all have been so amazing. Thank you for joining us once again. I am switching cameras and getting Jacob to work. I went back until next time, beautiful friends. It's Ruth Debate South Hall with the Becoming Serene podcast just for you. Stay serene. Let's say bye.