Teen Science Café Network

What Teen Science Café Network does

Teen Science Café Network (TSCN) is a nonprofit community of practice founded in 2008 that supports free, out-of-school programs connecting teenagers with STEM experts through interactive conversations and hands-on activities. Each café is locally hosted by partner institutions—museums, libraries, science centers, 4-H clubs, and schools—and is led by teens with adult-leader guidance. Since originating from Michelle Hall and Michael Mayhew's 2007 NSF-funded Café Scientifique program in four New Mexico cities, the network has grown to over 100 member programs across more than 23 states, with operations spanning rural, urban, and suburban communities in the United States and Canada. Member adult leaders must complete free training and host three cafés annually to remain in the network.

The organization's core technology is a dedicated online Member Portal (member.teensciencecafe.org) that enables café leaders to connect, access professional development webinars, share resources, and join affinity groups. TSCN also operates a digital content footprint across Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn, runs seasonal online informational sessions, and hosts an annual convening under STEM Next Opportunity Fund. The portfolio is supplemented by partnerships with SciStarter (citizen-science events) and the Million Girls Moonshot initiative.

TSCN's business model is grant-funded rather than revenue-generating: the National Science Foundation is the primary backer through multiple grants (numbers 2005815, 1935576, 1223830, 1906874), with supplemental support from STEM Next Opportunity Fund and minor partnerships such as Duke Energy Foundation and the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. All programs are free to teen attendees and host institutions, with optional micro-grants of up to $3,000 available to new sites for food and materials. The organization employs 1-10 staff in a fully remote configuration and reports no commercial revenue.

Name

Teen Science Café Network

Legal name

Teen Science Café Network

Website

https://teensciencecafe.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Teen Science Café Network is a nonprofit community of practice that supports free, teen-led STEM engagement programs connecting high school students with scientists across more than 100 sites in North America and Canada, funded primarily by NSF grants and operated under STEM Next Opportunity Fund.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Informal STEM Education / Youth Engagement

NAICS

Computer Training (611420)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Inclusion & Public Tech Access Training (Device/Internet/Basic IT) (EDAAAFAE)

Keywords

• STEM youth programs
• Out-of-school learning
• Community of practice
• Nonprofit network
• Science cafe programs

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. National Science Foundation Grants: Primary funding from NSF grants including Grant #s 2005815, 1935576, 1223830, 1906874. NSF grant to create Café Scientifique program for teens in 2007, followed by additional NSF funding in 2012 to establish TSCN.
2. STEM Next Opportunity Fund Support: TSCN is a movement of STEM Next Opportunity Fund, a nonprofit organization that makes high-quality STEM learning opportunities a reality for young people across the nation.
3. Member Organization Fees: Free memberships offered to TSC coordinators. New members can apply for grants of up to $3,000 to help pay for food and materials for hands-on activities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Teen Science Café Network (TSCN) operates a national, teen-led out-of-school STEM engagement network that supports free Teen Science Café programs run by member science centers, museums, libraries, and community organizations across North America. It provides a programmatic model, training, a member portal, shared evaluation resources, and an Annual Convening to help local sites deliver consistent, high-quality STEM experiences for high school-age audiences.

Product overview

Teen Science Café Network offers a portfolio of programs and services centered around its core Teen Science Café program — free, out-of-school STEM engagement programs where teens connect with STEM experts through interactive conversations and hands-on activities. The network operates a Member Portal platform for community engagement and resource sharing, supplemented by training programs, seasonal informational sessions, and annual convenings. Programs are led by teens with adult guidance, serving rural, urban, and suburban communities across North America and Canada.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Teen Science Café Program Free, teen-led out-of-school STEM café program model adopted by member science centers, museums, libraries, universities, and community organizations to engage high school-age audiences in STEM.
• TSCN Member Portal

Quantifiable outcome

• 71% of teen participants report changed view of science importance to their lives
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• STEM Next Opportunity FundcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2008TSCN is a movement of STEM Next Opportunity Fund, a nonprofit that makes high-quality STEM learning opportunities a reality for millions of young people across the nation. STEM Next supports out-of-school time STEM programs and provides administrative and strategic support to TSCN.
• Science Education SolutionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch and development company founded by Michelle Hall and Michael Mayhew (TSCN co-directors). Created the Teen Science Café model based on Café Scientifique. Conducts ongoing evaluation and research on program impacts.
• SciStartercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Acts of Science: Connected events uniting participants nationwide to contribute real data to citizen science projects ranging from NASA science to Alzheimer research. TSCN helps facilitate local teen engagement in these national events.
• Million Girls MoonshotcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTSCN is an Implementation Partner of the Million Girls Moonshot initiative focused on engaging girls in STEM. Case studies document impact on youth attending Gadsden City High School's 21st Century Afterschool Program.
• J. Sickler ConsultingminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerResearch team conducts annual survey to understand dynamics of TSCN member programs. Produces annual research reports and webinars on survey results.
• Science Education Solutions (Jan Mokros, Michelle Hall)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNSF-funded study of Network rural sites with 15 adult leaders carrying out customized research projects over two years aimed at developing strategies for overcoming barriers to STEM engagement for rural teens via teen science café programs.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• National Science Teaching Association (NSTA): Largest national organization for science educators, with related informal-learning initiatives. Comparable in promoting STEM engagement and providing resources to educators, though primarily formal-school focused.
• 4-H: Large, established youth development organization with significant STEM programming through Cooperative Extension. Comparable as a national youth engagement platform, with overlapping channels (clubs, schools, libraries) but a much broader mandate.
• Afterschool Alliance: National advocacy organization supporting out-of-school-time programs for youth, including STEM. Comparable as a policy and capacity-building entity serving the same host organizations (libraries, community centers, schools).
• Girls Who Code: Major national nonprofit focused on closing the gender gap in computing. Comparable target audience (teen girls in STEM) and informal learning model, though narrower focus on computer science.

Direct peers

• National Girls Collaborative Project: National network connecting girl-serving STEM organizations. Closely comparable network-of-networks model with shared community-of-practice and resource-sharing approach, serving a similar mission.
• SciStarter: Citizen science platform that partners with TSCN for 'Acts of Science' events. Comparable in connecting public audiences—including teens—to real STEM projects and researchers.
• Million Girls Moonshot: National initiative engaging girls in STEM, with TSCN serving as an Implementation Partner. Highly comparable in mission and target audience, and co-serves many of the same sites and audiences.
• STEM Next Opportunity Fund: Parent organization and movement sponsor of TSCN. Directly comparable as the national nonprofit umbrella under which TSCN operates and through which TSCN is administered and funded.
• Science Education Solutions: Founded by TSCN co-directors Michelle Hall and Michael Mayhew, conducts the evaluation and research underpinning TSCN. Directly comparable as the R&D/evaluation partner within the same ecosystem.

Emerging players

• code.org: National nonprofit expanding access to computer science education, with significant K–12 reach. Partially comparable in targeting teens and informal STEM exposure, though primarily formal-school focused.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/TeenScienceCafe
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCRi9XKXbA5IW91saExrjHlQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/teenscicafe
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/teen-science-café-network
• Instagraminstagram.com/teensciencecafenetwork

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Teen Science Café Network