Katie Cottingham Email & Phone Number

New York, United States

I make science more accessible and understandable for audiences, ranging from the public to specialized scientists. I work with a broad range of clients and outlets, including AAAS/Science Custom Publishing, the American Oil Chemists' Society, the University of Pennsylvania, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), and EpiGenie.

Washington D.C. Metro Area

As Executive Editor and Manager of Science Communications at ACS, I coordinated the production of an array of press materials. My group was responsible for producing the weekly ACS PressPac, a collection of short press releases based on research published in our journals. I oversaw the writing of press releases and the recording of media briefings that publicized the research presented at our twice-yearly national meetings. I also assisted the director of the Communications group with addressing media requests for comment on important issues.

In my role as the manager of the Media Relations group within ACS Science Communications, I coordinated the production of the weekly ACS PressPac, a collection of short press releases based on research published in our journals. I also coordinated production of press releases that publicized the research that was presented at our twice-yearly national meetings. I moderated press conferences, edited and narrated podcast scripts, managed our social media presence, and coordinated other projects as needed.

As a senior science writer in the Office of Public Affairs of ACS, I did a little of everything. I wrote about cutting-edge scientific advancements, managed a web-based email system for distributing press releases to thousands of reporters and ACS members around the world, maintained our Twitter and Facebook presences, wrote scripts for science education videos, narrated podcasts, wrote blog posts, analyzed media coverage, trained new employees, and coordinated a major ACS Presidential project to educate members about climate science. My main duty was to publicize the research that is published in our peer-reviewed chemistry journals and presented at our national meetings. I wrote and edited press releases on this research and coordinated their production. During each of our twice-yearly national meetings, I moderated numerous press conferences, helping scientists present their findings to reporters and the public via our Ustream channel.I started in this department as a science writer and moved up to senior science writer within a few months.

I wrote news articles about chemistry and biology research for EpiGenie.com. Other past clients include Scientific American, ScienceNow, and Chemical & Engineering News. I have written and edited scientific meeting reports and annual reports for the Jim Ayers Institute of Vanderbilt University. In addition, I have edited news articles on environmental science, analytical chemistry, and proteomics. I also edited a quarterly newsletter for a group of toxicologists. Areas of expertise: molecular biology, epigenetics, cell biology, proteomics, and analytical chemistry.

As the editor of PD Online Research, a website for the Parkinson’s disease (PD) research community, I chose all topics covered in the news section and wrote news stories on the latest neuroscience developments. Also, I reported on scientific conferences and produced podcasts. My meeting summaries were typically the most accessed articles on the site.In addition, I implemented various marketing strategies to increase usage of the website. For example, I addressed MJFF grantees at conferences and showed them the benefits of PD Online Research. I also encouraged other neuroscience organizations to link to the site and distribute PD Online Research promotional materials at their conferences. Other outreach efforts included representing MJFF at the World Parkinson Congress in Glasgow (Scotland) and producing a biweekly newsletter. To better understand how to serve the PD community, I analyzed web statistics.I accelerated social media efforts to connect with PD researchers and patients by tweeting about breakthroughs in the field and tweeting during meetings to provide real-time updates. Under my direction, followers increased by 42% and retweets increased by 30%. Facebook followers increased by 92%.

Choosing all of the topics that were covered in the news section of the Journal of Proteome Research (JPR) was my main duty as senior editor of the publication. I also wrote and edited news stories on proteomics and analytical chemistry. In the course of my reporting duties, I tackled controversial topics and blogged about these on the ACS CENtral Science site. I created two columns for JPR news that covered bioinformatics and large proteomics collaborations. I attended meetings in the U.S., Europe, and Asia and wrote news stories about scientific developments that were presented at these meetings. Not only did I edit the work of freelance writers, but I also worked closely with scientists to craft editorials for JPR. I recorded and edited JPR podcasts. I was promoted twice.In addition to my writing and editing duties, I worked on an ACS-wide team to develop schemes for posting peer-reviewed manuscripts before they were edited (“Just Accepted” manuscripts). For this project, I conducted a competitive analysis, developed workflows, and wrote text explaining the project for readers. I also managed a team of ACS writers for a special project summarizing research papers published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS).

At AAAS, I wrote and edited articles for Science’s Next Wave (now Science Careers) and GrantsNet, two online resources for young scientists. At Next Wave, I managed international features on science policy, ethics, and careers. I covered the funding scene for GrantsNet, including updates on new grants and fellowships, as well as stories on how to obtain funding. I created the “Federal Corner” department for GrantsNet. I also participated in science career fairs across the country, explaining how I made the switch from the lab bench to writing.

My research as a postdoctoral fellow was on cell division. I applied biochemistry, cell biology, and genetics methods to learn how normal cells divide and how cancer could develop when this process goes awry.