Julie received her PhD in chemistry at the University of British Columbia where she studied hormones involved in the growth of breast cancer. During her PhD, she developed an interest in science education. This led to her current role as a postdoctoral scholar at the University of California San Diego. In this position, Julie uses her chemistry knowledge and research methods from social sciences to study teaching and learning. Presently, she is researching how STEM instructors interpret data about their teaching and how this impacts their teaching practices.Julie is also passionate about science communication and how it can be improved within and outside of academia. Previously, she was an organizer and advisory board member of the organization ComSciConCAN which trains graduate students to become effective science communicators. Ultimately, Julie is interested in how the skills of an effective STEM educator may be used to improve the communication of scientific ideas to the public. Julie received her PhD in chemistry at the University of British Columbia where she studied hormones involved in the growth of breast cancer. During her PhD, she developed an interest in science education. This led to her current role as a postdoctoral scholar at the University of California San Diego. In this position, Julie uses her chemistry knowledge and research methods from social sciences to study teaching and learning. Presently, she is researching how STEM instructors interpret data about their teaching and how this impacts their teaching practices.Julie is also passionate about science communication and how it can be improved within and outside of academia. Previously, she was an organizer and advisory board member of the organization ComSciConCAN which trains graduate students to become effective science communicators. Ultimately, Julie is interested in how the skills of an effective STEM educator may be used to improve the communication of scientific ideas to the public. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx