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Get Involved

Youth Advisory Board – Get Involved

Youth Advisory Board members.
Our Youth Advisory Board (YAB) plays an integral role in shaping MCYU. At our YAB meetings, we get to hear directly from the youth we work with about what they are interested in learning about and what matters most to them. This is a great opportunity for youth to engage in directing their own learning. Just one other way we are encouraging our youth to become empowered and engaged citizens. Your voice and ideas are important to us!


How to join our Youth Advisory board:

If you are 9–14 years old and attend our Lecture Series and/or MCYU in the City workshops you are eligible to join. For more information and to register, please email the program coordinator, Rebecca.


YAB Meeting:

Planning in progress

Volunteers – Get Involved

Volunteer with MCYU

We are always looking for eager and passionate individuals to join the MCYU team! Below are the three volunteer opportunities we offer. For more information, and to register, please email our program coordinator, Rebecca.

Volunteer Opportunities

  • Event Volunteers
    • Volunteers will assist with a variety of MCYU events that take place between September and May. You will help set up and clean up after the events, check in attendees, put up signs and hand out swag.
  • Multimedia Volunteers
    • Volunteers will work with the design team to develop online learning resources and content for MCYU’s social media.
  • Workshop Facilitator Volunteers
    • Volunteers will work in groups to deploy educational workshops to schools, libraries and after-school programs in Hamilton, Ontario. It is preferred that volunteers have taken “CMTYENGA 2MC3: Design and Creation of Engaged Learning for Community Youth” or completed MCYU’s e-modules.

*Note: Workshop facilitator volunteers are required to be undergraduate McMaster University students.

Teacher Advisory Board – Get Involved

What Does the MCYU Teacher Advisory Board Do?

The MCYU in the City workshops are developed in collaboration with a team of teachers who work with MCYU to ensure that the workshops are engaging experiences for young minds and that the content aligns with the needs of the Ontario elementary school curriculum. MCYU is grateful for the commitment of these dedicated educators, as their collaboration is critical to the success of MCYU.

The panel advises MCYU on the type of topics, choices for interactive activities and the types of classroom support that are necessary for optimal teaching and teacher workloads. MCYU would like to extend a great big thank you to these teachers and all the wonderful educators, across the Hamilton Wentworth District School Board, who willingly share their valuable time with the MCYU team on a regular basis.

Are you a teacher who would like to get involved?

For more information, email us.

McMaster Professors – Get Involved

Dear Faculty,

We invite you to take this unique opportunity to get your research out in the community and communicate it to specialized audiences. McMaster Children and Youth University (MCYU) has been operating for 10 years now. Part of our programming is to have experts from the university present their research to children and families. These take the form of lectures once a month on Saturday mornings.

Participants in the MCYU lectures series have noted several benefits. For instance, it allows you to look at your research in a fresh new way, the questions and comments, especially from kids in the audience, help to reveal novel angles and perspectives on your research, it forces you to be creative about how you communicate your research, and it is a great way to connect with the broader Hamilton community.

We invite you to contact us to get involved and deliver what may be one of the most fulfilling lectures of your career. If you are interested, please email Dr. Sandy Raha (rahas@mcmaster.ca).

A professor walking up the aisle speaking to the audience while presenting at a MCYU Family Lecture.

A professor presenting at a MCYU Family Lecture, selecting someone to share their answer.

On the last Saturday of every month, we host Family Lectures geared toward children and youth ages 7–14. These interactive sessions spark curiosity and empower all young individuals to question the world around them, discover their potential and create a brighter future. For more information, please email MCYU’s program coordinator, Rebecca.