Scientific societies play an important role in scientists' career development and can have an impact on scientific advancement. The current study explores scientific societies' view of and support for public engagement. Interviews with key actors of 21 US-based scientific societies suggest that societies recognize the value of public engagement and outreach, and the emphasis has been steadily increasing. Depending on the membership size and discipline of the society, various types of engagement activities are supported and offered. We also explored potential challenges and opportunities for societies in supporting scientific engagement of the public. The current project aimed at providing an overview of the role of scientific societies to help identify ways to areas to enhance the allocation of resources to support public engagement and future research, including theory development.