Enhance your writing skills and adapt your science communication style for different outlets.

The “Art of Science Writing,” is an intermediate-level course designed to elevate your science communication skills and expand your writing repertoire across various platforms. Delve into advanced interviewing techniques, learn to craft compelling narratives for different platforms, and master the art of brand journalism. Each module features a short video lecture, assigned readings, and practical assignments with thought-provoking discussions to enhance your understanding and application of science writing principles. 

• Leveraging Your Resources Learn how you can leverage resources such as source credibility and AI to effectively communicate with your audience.
• Writing for Different Platforms Explore the nuances of writing for different platforms such as video and social media. Practice adapting your style to meet platform-specific requirements and engage various demographics effectively.
• Brand Journalism Writing for organizations, balancing promotional and informative content, and how to build a successful career. 
• The Pitch In the final module, we’ll cover the art of pitching your expert, yourself, and/or your work to amplify it through earned media. 

Who should Register

This course is tailored for individuals with some experience in science writing who are eager to refine their techniques and explore new media.

Instructor: Deborah Bright

Deborah L. Bright has been a professional science communicator for just over a decade. With a unique background in both science and communication, she has dedicated her career to promoting scientific literacy. Her work has been featured in numerous media and has won multiple awards. Deborah holds a Master’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies and is currently pursuing her PhD in Strategic Communication with a focus on science communication. She is a current Board Member of the San Diego Science Writers Association and serves as an Advocate for the Ruben H. Fleet Science Center as part of their "Two Scientists Walk Into a Bar" program.

Learn to harness the power of pictures to engage and educate any audience!

In an age of increasingly complex science, pictures can be a key to communicating clearly. But few science communicators have had a chance to learn how to access the power of pictures to engage and educate their audiences.

This course is designed to empower anyone to do that — to create pictures that clearly convey science information, no matter how complex.

What you'll learn in this course

S.P.A.R.K. will change forever the way you think about pictures and use them to communicate about science. 

You’ll learn core concepts of visual communication. This is not a course on how to draw. The S.P.A.R.K. strategies work with many ways of presenting information — diagrams, charts, posters, sketches, cartoons, even data visualizations. What you'll learn can be applied to pictures created by hand or with software you already know.

Each of the 24 videos is 10 minutes or less. You’ll learn:

• A perfect way to jumpstart your visual thinking and transition from words to pictures
• How to speak with the 8 elements of visual language
• Ways to target your audience’s visual sweet spot
• Tips for visually communicating to people who aren’t familiar with your top

Media producers, writers, journalists, educators, publishers, communications professionals, researchers, academics, students—anyone interested in making a greater impact with their science messages.

Join the ranks of science communicators who have already used S.P.A.R.K. to improve their outreach and communication skills, including at Yale, Harvard, the Innovative Genomics Institute, the University of Miami, Louisiana Tech University, and the University of Oregon, along with labs and individuals worldwide.

Instructors

Betsy Palay	Tami Tolpa
Betsy has over 30 years of experience creating visual communications for science researchers, educators, major biotech companies, and entrepreneurs. She is the founder and former president of a design firm that specialized in investor communications, assisting clients in raising a total of over half a billion dollars in Initial Public Offerings (IPO’s). Betsy has an MS in medical and biological illustration from the University of Michigan, is a Board-Certified Medical Illustrator, and is a Fellow and a past president of the Association of Medical Illustrators. Over 100 of her original scientific illustrations have been accepted into the permanent archives of the Vesalius Trust Collection of the Lloyd Library and Museum, Cincinnati, Ohio. See her work at www.betsypalay.com.	Tami has over 20 years of experience in scientific illustration and animation for clients including: Scientific American Magazine, The Scientist Magazine, Science News, MIT's Technology Review, Harvard University, and the University of Washington, as well as numerous physicians and biotechnology companies. Tami has an MFA in medical illustration from the Rochester Institute of Technology. She’s a past board member and current Fellow of the Association of Medical Illustrators. Tami has spoken about science communication using visuals at the University of Washington, Rochester Institute of Technology, the Association of Medical Illustrators, The Northwest Science Writer's Association, Science Talk '18, and ComSciCon-PNW. She's currently the Scientific Illustrator at Gladstone Institutes. Her professional website is www.tolpa.com.

Turn Theory into Impactful Practice

Science communication plays a vital role in bridging the gap between scientific research and society. However, ensuring that communication efforts achieve their intended impact requires a structured approach to evaluation. This course equips participants with the knowledge and tools needed to critically evaluate science communication initiatives, using frameworks and methodologies grounded in both science communication research and the social sciences.

Through a combination of theoretical insights, real-world case studies, and practical exercises, participants will gain the skills to implement effective evaluation strategies tailored to their projects. Additionally, participants will design their own evaluation plan through a combination of assignments and hands-on workshop activities

Key Learning Objectives

• Understand the Fundamentals of Evaluation
  Recognize the role of evaluation in science communication and its importance for improving engagement and impact.
• Apply an Evaluation Framework
  Learn how to define clear objectives and how to design a holistic and measurable evaluation model.
• Differentiate Types of Evaluation
  Identify when and how to use formative, summative, and impact assessment to evaluate Science Communication initiatives.
• Leverage Social Science Methods
  Explore qualitative and quantitative tools, such as surveys, interviews, and focus groups, to evaluate communication effectiveness.
• Collect and Analyze Data
  Gain hands-on experience in designing data collection strategies, interpreting results, and making data-driven decisions.
• Develop a Practical Evaluation Plan
  Apply course learnings in a workshop setting to create a customized evaluation plan for a specific Science Communication initiative

Who Should Register?

All science communication practitioners and researchers, from any scientific field, interested in improving their evaluation competencies.

Instructor

Susana Ambrósio

Susana holds a PhD in Education and a specialization in Science Communication. She has more than 15 years of experience in social sciences research. She has conceived and developed several science communication initiatives, as well as delivered training courses in science communication. Currently, she is a consultant and trainer at Yellow Lemon - Scientific Consulting and Training. Susana is also the Volunteer Coordinator for the Association of Science Communicators.

Join ASC for our first community town hall!

Join the Association of Science Communicators (ASC) for an online town hall exploring the rapidly changing landscape of science communication. This session will begin with an open discussion (40 minutes) on the key challenges facing the field today, including the shift from salaried team-based roles to independent freelance work, growing government hostility and funding cuts toward science, and the urgent need to rebuild public trust in science communication.

Following the discussion, we will move into a 15-minute Community Call: Offers & Asks, where participants can share resources, seek support, and connect with peers.

Moderated by ASC Online Events Manager Therese Ton and science communicator Will Freund, the conversation will tackle questions such as:

• How can organizations adapt to the rise of independent science communicators?
• How can financial support be balanced with maintaining objectivity and trust?
• What strategies best protect science communication from political and cultural pressures?
• How do we rebuild credibility in an era of misinformation and skepticism?
• What role should institutions play in supporting freelancers and hybrid communicators?

This event is designed to be interactive, collaborative, and forward-looking. Come ready to share your experiences, insights, and ideas as we work together to strengthen and future-proof the science communication community.

Therese Ton

Will Freund

Therese's background blends science, creativity, and storytelling. She started her career as a Research Associate at the Broad Institute, where she conducted molecular and cellular biology research to investigate potential therapeutic targets in cardiovascular disease, before moving into R&D project and program management at Astria Therapeutics, supporting IND submissions, coordinating cross-functional teams, and applying her expertise in scientific illustration and mechanism of action content for corporate and clinical communications. Therese then opened t.ton studios, where she worked as a freelance scientific communications consultant, developing graphics, animations, and branding for biotech and research organizations. In her current role at Generate:Biomedicines, Therese focuses on scientific storytelling across internal and external channels, helping to create compelling content that brings our work to life.  Outside of work, you can find Therese in the kitchen running her baking business called Toscah Bakery or in the studio dancing. Therese currently serves as the Online Events Manager at the Association of Science Communicators (ASC) and is thrilled to engage, nurture, and grow the SciComms community.

Will Freund is first and foremost a storyteller with a passion for education, the environment, and making something from nothing. As a STEM connector, environmental educator, and filmmaker with almost a decade of experience, Will has a driving passion to lower the threshold to entry for all creative and educational endeavors while addressing the climate crisis. Will currently works as an educator at the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium in Draper, Utah. Before his current role, Will has held various educational, community engagement, and research positions at the Environmental Educators of North Carolina, the Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, the Redford Center, the Sea Education Association, and other organizations. Will serves as an Events and Course Volunteer at the Association of Science Communicators (ASC) and is excited to find ways to bring people together to learn in nontraditional ways.