About

About SCI

The Science Communication Institute (SCI, formerly the National Science Communication Institute) is a 501c3 nonprofit public charity. Our mission is to help improve science collaboration, discovery, education and public policy by reforming the communication culture inside science.

The Issue

Science does a poor job of communicating internally. Scientists write mostly for journals that very few people ever read, researchers don’t share their data often enough, science efforts don’t spend money on coordinated public relations efforts, and more. As a result, science doesn’t discover as much as it might, and opportunities for discovery are being lost. This is true in every field from medical research to alternative energy research to pure science. STEM education is also a continual challenge, at least in part due to these communications issues, and the public’s understanding of science is anemic.

Our Approach

SCI is working to help science achieve its full potential by improving science communication tools, policies and practices. This is easier said than done. The culture of communication in science is deeply engrained and the product of hundreds of years of evolution. SCI uses a project-based approach to affect change, developing and managing a variety of science communication projects.

ROI

The return on investment for improving science communication will benefit science and society for generations, resulting in more efficient research funding, better science, faster discovery and innovation, and better science education and science policy.

Board

SCI’s board has varied in size over the years between five and 15 members. Board members serve terms of two years minimum. Our current board members have been with SCI since our founding in 2011:

  • Drienna Holman, MPH, is the senior project manager for the HIV vaccine evaluation program at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center’s Statistical Center for HIV/AIDS Research and Prevention (SCHARP). Drienna has over 20 years experience in study and data operations management of HIV vaccine clinical trials. She has served the global HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN) statistical and data management center at SCHARP since 2000, and the AIDS Vaccine Evaluation Group (AVEG) data coordination and analysis center at the EMMES Corporation in Potomac, Maryland, from 1995-2000.
  • Michael Hampson, MBA, is a director at the Raytheon Company where he leads the development of next generation defense avionics for future military platforms. Mike was also a director at the Boeing Company where he was responsible for new initiatives in Homeland Security and advanced renewable energy technologies. Previously, Mike spent over 20 years at Boeing and Rockwell International as an engineer and program manager developing advanced liquid rocket engines.
  • Eric Olson is the national outreach coordinator for ORCID. Previously, he served as project manager at the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University. Eric has been active in SCI projects for several years, and is currently the director of SCI’s Science Communication Network project.
  • Jeff Hoch focuses on water quality and policy issues both as an environmental professional and science writer. He has participated in water projects around the country, served as a member of the infrastructure design team for Spaceport America, and is principal researcher at a megalith geoarchaeological site in New Mexico.
  • Glenn Hampson, MPA, is the founder and executive director of the Science Communication Institute. (See biosketch below)

Staff

Glenn Hampson, MPA, is the founder and executive director of the Science Communication Institute and program director of the Open Scholarship Initiative (OSI, an SCI project). Hampson has served as a senior project manager for the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, communications director for the University of Washington, president of Castle Pacific Publishing Company, managing editor and webmaster for the World Bank Group, associate editor for the Riverside Publishing Company, and a field representative for the US Congress. Hampson holds degrees in public administration, history and astronomy, serves on several boards, and has authored several books. He lives in Seattle with his wife and son where he coaches youth baseball and volunteers in schools and community.

Legal

Financials (recent)

Contact

Science Communication Institute
2320 N 137th Street
Seattle, WA 98133 USA

Email: [email protected]

What is scicomm?

Science communication has no broadly accepted definition. SCI takes a very broad view of this field, and has identified eight areas of science that rely heavily on effective communication and that can be targeted with improved communications. These areas are divided into two groups—those that involve science discovery tools and dynamics and those that involve improving science understanding. SCI’s “discovery” focus areas include research collaboration, informatics, study design, and tech transfer; “understanding” areas include science writing, STEM education, science marketing and public policy. SCI believes that science needs better communication tools and practices in these areas to help realize the full potential of research and also make faster advances in science education, science policy and other areas where science and society intersect.

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