Video Summary:

• The APS Department Chairs Congressional Visit Day took place virtually earlier this month in conjunction with the Department Chairs Conference. 25 physics department chairs from around the country came together to take more than 45 meetings with members of Congress and their staff.
   
• The topline issue discussed in the meetings was federal science funding and COVID relief. Other issues included combating sexual harassment in STEM, building research capacity to broaden opporutnities for students from underrepresented groups and underserved communities, visa and immigration issues, and support for the NSF for the Future Act.
   
• APS led a multi-science-society community sign-on letter through late May and early June to bolster broad community support of the NSF for the Future Act which collected more than 1,650 signatures. The legislation aims to accelerate American innovation by expanding NSF’s use-inspired research and strengthening NSF’s curiosity-driven fundamental research programs.
   
• A new APS Government Affairs issue brief, released this month, revealed that more than two-thirds of the international, first-year physics PhD students who were slated to enroll in fall 2020 are still not on campus. Maintaining US competitiveness requires immediate action by the State Department to provide a clear timeline and guidance for international STEM graduate students currently waiting to obtain their visas to study in this country and Congress to pass visa and immigration policies that will attract international talent.