APS News

November 2017 (Volume 26, Number 10)

2017 APS Board Statements

APS Statements undergo a meticulous process of draft and review, including receiving comments from members, before being voted on by the Council at one of its semiannual meetings.

Board Statements expedite the APS Statement draft and review process in cases where more rapid action is necessary. If Board Statements are not eventually submitted to Statement review procedures, they are archived after one year and may not be renewed. The 2017 Board Statements are given below.

Unit Statements are drafted by the individual membership bodies and are submitted to the Council via the Panel on Public Affairs. Specific statements of narrower concern may be submitted to the APS Executive Office.

 

APS Board Statement on H-1B Visas (passed September 16, 2017)

The H-1B temporary work visa program that permits highly skilled foreign-nationals to work in the U.S. has been vital to American interests and should continue. Nevertheless, the APS recognizes a need to reform the H-1B program to stem recent abuse, without affecting the ability of American companies and academia to acquire needed talent. The reform of the H-1B system must ensure access to scientific and technical talent wherever it may be found, while protecting the interests of U.S. citizens.

As for the portion of the H-1B program that exempts institutes of higher education, non-profit organizations and government research organizations from the overall visa cap under specific circumstances, APS is not aware of any abuse of this portion of the H-1B program, and recommends that it remain intact.

 

APS Board Statement on Racial Violence (passed April 23, 2017)

Physics flourishes best when physicists can work in an environment of safety, justice, and equity. Therefore, all of us must work vigorously against systemic racism and to overcome implicit biases. The Board of the American Physical Society believes that it is timely to reaffirm the importance of building a diverse and inclusive physics community, as expressed in the APS Joint Diversity Statement (Human Rights 08.2). The Board expresses deep concern over incidents of racially biased violence and threats of violence against people of color.

November 2017 (Volume 26, Number 10)

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Articles in this Issue
2017 Nobel Prize in Physics
Optimism Abounds at Conference on Women in Physics
From Cameroon to the APS
2017 APS Board Statements
Gravitational Wave Observatories Open New Era in Astronomy
APS Senior Physicists Gather for Anniversary
From Laser Explosions to Feynman Diagrams: Science Comics at Comic-Con
Research News: Editor's Choice
Spotlight on Development
This Month in Physics History
Education & Diversity Update
Profiles in Versatility
News from the APS Office of Public Affairs
The Back Page

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Editor: David Voss
Contributing Correspondent: Alaina G. Levine
Publication Designer and Production: Nancy Bennett-Karasik