Science is Cool
Amid a global emergency, I designed game-changing virtual unconferences for an EdTech start-up, turning a canceled conference into digital lemonade gold.
Within two years “Science is Cool” events reached over 140,000 educators in 204 countries...
…because science is cool.
How it began and why teachers love it.
Facebook ad featuring ScIC1, ScIC2, and ScIC3.
How we did it and why it worked.
“Science is Cool” by PocketLab
Free Virtual Unconferences for Cool Teachers
I joined the PocketLab start-up as a Creative Director tasked with developing a marketing strategy and creating a team. Just days later, amidst a global pandemic and uncertain what marketing should look like when the world seems to have shut down, we saw a unique opportunity to host a virtual conference. We thought that this would at least unite the science community we’d miss from canceled conferences.
On April 1, 2020, we launched our first "Science is Cool" (ScIC) event. We anticipated perhaps a hundred participants and were thrilled to receive over 3,000 registrations, with an attendance rate surpassing 75%. Since the first conference, we have hosted ten large virtual events that attract ten thousand teachers each, twenty ScIC and PocketLab webinars, and created dozens of invaluable partnerships for PocketLab.
We brought together influential science celebrities like Neil deGrasse Tyson from StarTalk, Ira Flatow from Science Friday, and Miles O’Brien from PBS NewsHour. Teachers were drawn to these speakers, and also strongly responded to chatting with EdTech professionals they already use in their classroom, such as Bozeman Science, Kesler Science, Hooked on Science, and PhET Interactive Simulations.
Within two years, Science is Cool is now the largest STEM community on the planet. New partnerships position PocketLab as a science industry leader and a superstar for educators around the globe, and created a brand new business model resulting in unprecedented and exponential growth.
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Miles O'Brien
PBS NEWSHOUR
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Neil deGrasse Tyson
COSMOS, STARTALK
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Constance Steinkuehler
U.C. IRVINE
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Ira Flatow
SCIENCE FRIDAY
Timeline of Events
March 2020 - March 2022
MARCH 9, 2020Joined the PocketLab Team
APRIL 1, 2020SCIENCE IS COOL · ScIC
FOR TEACHERS, BY TEACHERS
An unprecedented pandemic just canceled everything. What can teachers do?
KEYNOTE: Dr Robert Siegel, Stanford University Professor of Microbiology and Immunology, Killer Snails, Argument-Driven Inquiry, Green Ninja, PocketLab, Tyto Online, Vidcode, Estes Rockets, Brown Dog Gadgets, Bozeman Science, TeacherGeek
May 21, 2020SCIENCE IS COOL · ScIC2
DISTANCE STEM LEARNING
KEYNOTE: StarTalk with Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice, PocketLab, The Wonder of Science, PhET, TeacherGeek, Hooked On Science, Exploratorium, Argument-Driven Inquiry, Future Engineers, Nasco, Parametric Studios
PocketLab Thermo
PRODUCT LAUNCH
Blue Sky Zero
CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT
July 8, 2020SCIENCE IS COOL · ScIC3
REMOTE CONTROL
KEYNOTE: StarTalk with Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice, Director of the ISS International Space Station, Smithsonian, Science Friday, Walt Disney Imagineering, National Geographic, NASA, Lego Education.
October 24, 2020SCIENCE IS COOL · ScIC4
IN THE CLASSROOM AND BEYOND
KEYNOTE: StarTalk with Neil deGrasse Tyson and Chuck Nice, PocketLab, Lego Education, The Wonder of Science, Estes Rockets, SciShow, Smithsonian Science Education Center, Green Ninja, Biomimicry Institute, SciStarter, NASA & Future Engineers
ScIC and StarTalk LIVE
CLIMATE WEEK NYC
Hosted StarTalk LIVE at Climate Week NYC
10,000 Teachers
EVENT BY CHUCK NICE FROM STARTALK
Presented with PocketLab and inspired by ScIC2, which attracted 10k educators.
Webinar: Break Room Series
Weather Balloons
Webinar: Break Room Series
Mr. Science Holiday STEM 2020
JANUARY - MARCH 2021PocketLab Website
BRAND STORYTELLING REDESIGN
Long overdue, we carved out time between events to redevelop the PocketLab website.
April 1, 2021SCIENCE IS COOL · ScIC5
CITIZEN SCIENCE AND STORYTELLING
KEYNOTE: StarTalk with Neil deGrasse Tyson, Activate, Walt Disney Imagineering, Exploratorium, PocketLab, Kesler Science, PhET, International Space Station, NGen, NatGeo, Science Friday, SciStarter
Webinar
PocketLab Notebook
Webinar: Break Room Series
Education in Action
Webinar: Break Room Series
PhET Interactive Simulations
July 29, 2021 SCIENCE IS COOL · ScIC6 DAY 1
GAME CHANGER
KEYNOTE: Constance Steinkuehler, faculty lead for the UCI Esports Research Lab, Tammie Schrader, Garden State Esports, Robbie Melton, StarTalk, Twitch, Highschool.GG, Epic Games, Minecraft, First Global & Filament Games, Science Friday
AUGUST 5, 2021 SCIENCE IS COOL · ScIC6 DAY 2
SUMMIT: LET’S FIX STEM
STEM Coordinators and Administrators discuss how to fix common STEM education issues. K-5 STEM, Women in STEM, Integration, Esports/Games, 21st Century Skills, DEI, Local Phenomena
Webinar: Break Room Series
UrbanHeat ATL
Webinar: Break Room Series
Games & Esports
Webinar: Break Room Series
Women in STEM
PocketLab G-Force
PRODUCT LAUNCH
“A science lab on wheels.”
October 28, 2021SCIENCE IS COOL · ScIC7
INNOVATION IN THE SCIENCE CLASSROOM
KEYNOTE: Ira Flatow with Science Friday, OpenSciEd, Vernier, Conceptual Academy, Chris Rush Town Hall, SEL from WestEd, Wow in the World, Donors Choose, NSF National Science Foundation
Webinar: Break Room Series
G-Force Fighter Pilot
Webinar
Mr. Science Holiday STEM
February 28, 2022SCIENCE IS COOL · ScIC8
ACTION + IMPACT
KEYNOTE: Miles O’Brien with PBS NewsHour, UrbanHeat ATL, Georgia Tech, Maynard Okereke, Future Engineers, NASA, STEM Panel
ScIC Unplugged
SCIENCE IS COOL PODCAST
ScIC Unconferences
Keystone events for ScIC occurred every few months, structured as one eight-hour long stream with five-minute breaks. Hosting on Zoom made people feel like they were “right there with us.”
Webinars
Special events were hosted by ScIC and PocketLab, in association with new partnerships. We tested these events with our large audience for reach depending on the host, style of event, and timing.
Product Launches
PocketLab designs and manufactures multi-purpose science lab sensors. Marketing efforts coordinated with the manufacturing team for these launches to sync with large events and attention.
Event Registrations
140,000 Educators
Global Reach
204 Countries
“ScIC by PocketLab” Facebook Group
12,300 Members
“PocketLab” Facebook Page
7,400 Likes and 8,300 Followers
“ScIC Science is Cool Unconference” Facebook Page
16,000 Likes and 18,000 Followers
In March 2020, PocketLab was a company of seven people with part-time marketing help.
Fast forward two years, boosted by our 'Science is Cool' events and a dedicated marketing team of three, we've significantly expanded our leads, forged standout product partnerships, and established ourselves as global thought leaders in the education industry.
Starting with ~800 social media followers and a handful of partnerships, the statistics and partnerships prove its impact.
Know Your Audience
TARGET AND TUNE
PocketLab, created by teachers for teachers, deeply understands the challenges educators face, especially during the pandemic. We initially connected with classroom teachers, most of whom were eager to share their struggles with virtual teaching, changing standards, low pay, and burnout—issues that were intensified by the pandemic.
Seeing a broader opportunity to help, we reached out to STEM Coordinators and Administrators, the key decision-makers who oversee large groups of teachers. By bridging the gap between these administrators and the teachers, we've improved our ability to support educators and have fostered better collaboration within schools. This approach has allowed us to enhance the impact of STEM education significantly.
"Science is Cool" reflects the sentiment that science and its educators are bravely weird and cool. It speaks to being appreciated and seen as superstars in their own right. The narrative I crafted around this idea landed as supportive and served as a call for unity at a really hard time for educators.
Craft Your Message
DESIGN YOUR STORY
The PocketLab team truly gets what educators go through because many of us come from teaching backgrounds. That’s why we set up Think Tanks with both teachers and STEM Coordinators. These discussions help us pinpoint what you really need from our events and inform how we can best support the community.
Instead of traditional conferences, we opted for an "unconference" approach. This means the agenda is driven the teachers and not vendors or administrators. We keep our events simple, using Zoom to create a personal and accessible atmosphere. Our full-day sessions were designed to fit into a teacher’s busy schedule, with minimal disruptions and no need for slides, making each presentation direct and engaging.
Design Your Offer
CLARIFY YOUR PROMISE
At PocketLab, we prioritize accessible professional development for teachers, who often can't afford industry conferences. We offer free or low-cost presentations with practical solutions and provide PD certificates to help justify the time spent. This approach fosters a sense of community, making educators feel valued and connected.
Our unconferences feature ready-to-use lesson plans and free video content, enhancing teachers’ daily lesson delivery and reinforcing their commitment to education.
Additionally, through partnerships with leaders in science education like Neil deGrasse Tyson’s StarTalk and organizations such as the Smithsonian Science Education Center, our digital app, Notebook, is enriched with trusted resources. These collaborations provide teachers with innovative and reliable content that brings science to life in the classroom.
Make Your Plan
ITERATE AND OPTIMIZE
PocketLab has been busy hosting big events and using what we've learned from them to make our website better. We've also made sure to weave more of our own tools and resources into these events, helping us build stronger connections with teachers and STEM coordinators.
We started with small in-person meetings but have grown dramatically by shifting to large virtual events. This move increased our reach from 300 leads at traditional conferences to over 140,000 educators across 204 countries. This growth has not only expanded our community but also helped us stand out as a leader in the field of educational technology.
By creating a platform where educators can share both their challenges and their solutions, we've strengthened the support network available to them. This approach has turned PocketLab into a key place where teachers and administrators find the help they need to overcome common obstacles and share their successes, making a real difference in the educational community.
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