Board Statement on The Lincoln Project Excellence and Access in Public Higher Education

Archived Board Statement

September 17, 2016

The American Physical Society Board of Directors commends the American Academy of Sciences for its report on public research universities, “Recommitting to Lincoln’s Vision: An Educational Compact for the 21st Century.” The report, co-chaired by Robert Birgeneau and Mary Sue Coleman, provides a sobering account of the decline in public research university support — a drop of 34 percent nationwide in just the last decade — and its implications for America’s future. The report contains a set of thoughtful recommendations for (1) public research universities, (2) state government, (3) the federal government and (4) the private sector that are worthy of serious consideration. The American Physical Society Board recognizes that public research universities represent only one segment of the public higher education establishment and urges concerted study by scholarly and educational organizations of the broader problems of public higher education support.