In part two of our conversation with Dr Lori Banks, she tells us why making sure that students feel welcome in the lab is a prerequisite to preparing them for careers in science. Her own experience as a student convinced Lori of one thing: her role as an educator is to build self-confidence as much as it is to teach them biology. And for Lori, creating a “nerd army” that will change the world means teaching beyond the textbook, including the use of learning technology like Labster in her program at Bates College.