Meet the Chatterboxes

Introduction 

Welcome to The Chatterbox team blog. Members Rebecca, Shelby and Grace all related to frantic Kermit and felt it was the perfect GIF to represent our team. As a teacher, communications strategist and journalist, we all spend plenty of time behind a keyboard. Additionally, we all felt the pace of these three weeks is moving around this rate.

Shelby Soke Born and raised on a farm in Saskatchewan, Shelby Soke graduated from Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alta. with her Bachelor of Communications - Public Relations in 2013. Shelby is currently the Partner, Communications and Marketing, at the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry. Her career has taken her from a pipeline company in Calgary to a freelance consultant in Paris. A proud member of the U of A community, Shelby’s other recent roles on campus include being an advisor on the issues management and strategic initiatives team and leading communications and engagement at the School of Public Health. 

When she isn’t working, you can find Shelby hiking in the mountains with her two dogs, trying (and failing) to learn French and cooking or baking. 

Grace Sitima
Grace is Zambian-born. She is a trained journalist with a background in media spanning over a decade of working in the field of both electronic and print media. In her practice, she has been a media advocate, a gender activist, and passionate about communication for development.Upon arriving in Canada, she proceeded to further studies. She obtained a degree in Communication Studies, a major in professional communication from Macewan University before enrolling in the current MACT program at the University of Alberta (UofA). Grace is a detail-driven communications program manager and creative writer with a history of success in publishing. She has most recently worked as an Assistant Program Manager and Editor at the Antarctic Institute of Canada, editing nine books distributed by Lulu Publishing Canada. She is a mother of two adorable daughters, loves cooking and traveling.  

Rebecca Collins

An Edmonton born local, Rebecca is a drama and humanities educator with Edmonton Public Schools. At her home school, Michael Phair Junior High, she sponsors the school GSA program. She is currently using digital technologies to organize a GSA field trip for June: a queer history walking tour down town, curated and led by Michael Phair himself.During the pandemic, Rebecca taught online from March 2020 - June 2021. She happily returned to in person instruction in the fall of 2021. The pandemic taught her that there is capacity for relationship development over wifi signals. However, there is something special about sharing a physical learning environment with others. She obtained her undergraduate in Education from the University of Alberta in 2014 and she is thrilled to refamiliarize herself with the campus while attending the MACT program in person. Rebecca additionally works in the non-profit sector at YouthWrite: a camp for kids who love to write… just about anything! YouthWrite uses the arts as a springboard to creative writing. Rebecca loves to sing, write, explore art, and socialize. She is certainly known for being a chatterbox!