Exhibits

American Association of Physics Teachers: http://www.aapt.org/
American Physical Society: https://www.aps.org
Graduate Resources for Advancing Diversity with Maryland Astronomy and Physics: http://www.umdgradmap.org/
Howard University: https://www2.howard.edu/
National Institute of Standards and Technology: https://www.nist.gov/
National Society of Black Physicists: http://nsbp.org/
National Society of Hispanic Physicists: http://www.hispanicphysicists.org/
Society of Physics Students: https://www.spsnational.org/
The Optical Society: http://www.osa.org/en-us/home/
University of Maryland: http://www.umd.edu"

Freeman Hrabowski, III

Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, President of UMBC (University of Maryland, Baltimore County) since 1992, is a consultant on science and math education to national agencies, universities, and school systems. He was named by President Obama to chair the President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans. He also chaired the National Academies’ committee that produced the report, Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation: America’s Science and Technology Talent at the Crossroads (2011). Named one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World by TIME (2012) and one of America’s Best Leaders by U.S. News & World Report (2008), he also received TIAA-CREF’s Theodore M. Hesburgh Award for Leadership Excellence (2011), the Carnegie Corporation’s Academic Leadership Award (2011), and the Heinz Award (2012) for contributions to improving the “Human Condition.” UMBC has been recognized as a model for inclusive excellence by such publications as U.S. News, which the past seven years has recognized UMBC as a national leader in academic innovation and undergraduate teaching.

Robert Brown

Dr. Robert G. W. Brown is chief executive officer of the American Institute of Physics, a federation of 10 Member Societies in the physical sciences, which in total serve 120,000 members in the United States and around the world. As a trained physicist and engineer, Brown has made substantial contributions in research, product and business development, teaching, publishing, editorial direction, and administration. He has held various leadership positons in the corporate, non-profit, academic, and government sectors, principally in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Northern Ireland, with additional ventures throughout Europe and Asia. His research interests extend from nanotechnology to photonics, optics, medical physics, fluid dynamics, and beyond. Brown has authored more than 120 articles in peer-reviewed journals and holds 34 patents, several of which have been successfully commercialized. As CEO, he serves as an ex-officio member on the boards of AIP and AIP Publishing, a wholly owned subsidiary of the institute. Brown is an elected member of the European Academy of the Sciences and Arts (Academia Europaea) and a special professor at the University of Nottingham in the UK. He also retains an adjunct full professorship at the University of California, Irvine in the Beckman Laser Institute and Medical Clinic and is a visiting professor in the Department of Computer Science, also at UC Irvine. Before coming to AIP, Brown most recently led the nano-plasmonic research activities at Rockwell Collins’ Advanced Technology Center, and was chief technology officer to Ostendo Technologies, a specialist display company, in Carlsbad, California. He served for various years as professor and director of nanotechnology for Northern Ireland; executive director of the UK Institute of Physics; and head of optoelectronics research and development for Sharp Laboratories of Europe, the world’s third largest optoelectronics corporation. As a principal scientist in the UK Ministry of Defence’s Royal Radar Establishment, Brown was responsible for inventing new detector, electronic correlator, APD photo-detector, laser-diode, liquid-crystal display and optical-fiber technologies that have since been developed into successful products for experiments related to jet engines, macro-molecules, US submarines, and space shuttle instrumentation. Brown has been recognized for his entrepreneurship with the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence Prize for ‘Outstanding Technology Transfer,’ Sharp Corporation’s (Japan) prize for his novel laser-diode invention, and, together with his team at the UK Institute of Physics, a Queen’s Award for Enterprise, the highest honor that can be bestowed on a UK company. Brown is editor-in-chief of the Handbook of Optoelectronics published by CRC Press and is co-editor-in-chief of the CRC Press book series in ‘Optics and Optoelectronics’. He has been co-chairman for four of OSA’s International Photon Correlation Conferences, and editor of subsequent related special issues of Applied Optics. He has served as a consultant to many companies and government research centers in the USA and UK, most notably on NASA’s Microgravity Experimental Advisory Board and on the UK Home Office (Homeland Security Department equivalent) Science and Technology Reference Committee. Brown is a citizen of the United States and the United Kingdom.

Brad Conrad

Brad Conrad, originally from the Washington DC area, earned his B.S. in Physics and a minor in Modern World History from Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in the snowy northlands of Rochester, NY. While there, Brad was president of his local SPS chapter and a SPS National Council member, Zone 2. Brad then went on to complete his Ph.D. in Experimental Condensed Matter Physics at the University of Maryland College Park where he studied on organic semiconductors and surface physics. After a National Research Council fellowship at the National Institute of Standards and Technology where he worked on organic crystals, Brad became an Associate Professor at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. Brad Conrad has been an active volunteer at SPS/APS (American Physical Society) undergraduate research sessions, supported his local SPS chapters, and served on several APS task forces focused on graduate students and early career physicists. Dr. Brad Conrad now serves as the Director of the Society of Physics Students and Sigma Pi Sigma (ΣΠΣ). He proudly represents all SPS members and works to make SPS an integral component of each student’s personal phase space.

Ted Hodapp

Ted Hodapp has joined APS as Director of Education and Outreach, replacing Fred Stein, who retired in early September. Hodapp, who begins his position on September 27, says that he's motivated by a passion to improve education opportunities and physics education for all students. A physics researcher and teacher for many years, Hodapp loves the "human element" of education. "I really love physics. It's just cool. Being able to help other people see that has been a great joy to me," said Hodapp. Hodapp received his PhD in quantum optics and atomic physics from the University of Minnesota in 1988, and then joined the faculty of the physics department at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota. There he introduced several reforms, including a redesigned physics curriculum that included a junior- senior seminar and an undergraduate research experience. He served as chair of the department, and chair of the Science Division, and helped develop division and college strategic plans. He also substantially modified many courses to promote more hands-on learning, supervised many undergraduate research students, and presented numerous public physics demonstrations as a member of Hamline's "Piper Physics Patrol." Hodapp also carried out research in optics and laser cooling, and spent several years as a visiting scientist, first at NIST and then at the 3M Corporation, where he designed devices for display technologies, developed optical systems, and conducted research on laser ablation of materials. Several patents resulted from that work. In addition, Hodapp worked on research in physics pedagogy, including looking at the effectiveness of video analysis, computerized data-acquisition, and data analysis tools in a physics curriculum. While in Minnesota, Hodapp spearheaded efforts to rewrite the standards for licensure of science teachers in the state. Hodapp has also been on the Executive Board of the Council on Undergraduate Research, a member of the APS Committee on Education, and a long-term member of the American Association of Physics Teachers. Before coming to APS, Hodapp served for two years as Program Director for the Division of Undergraduate Education of the National Science Foundation (NSF). One of his major accomplishments was organizing a national meeting, "Invention and Impact," funded by the NSF's Course, Curriculum and Laboratory Improvement Program, on innovations in undergraduate education. Hodapp is pleased to come to APS because he sees it as a "unique opportunity to further the goals of education." He pointed out especially the need to get more minorities involved in science. "There's a vast untapped potential that could be contributing to the workforce," he said. One key to tapping that potential is education, said Hodapp. As Director of Education and Outreach, Hodapp will oversee all APS education programs. In particular, Hodapp plans to devote a considerable amount of his time at APS to the Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PhysTEC) program. At the PhysTEC participating institutions, physics and education departments work together to introduce changes that improve education for future teachers. PhysTEC focuses on encouraging a student-centered, inquiry-based approach to learning. Hodapp's predecessor, Fred Stein, started the PhysTEC program in 2001. Hodapp said he believes PhysTEC has been very successful, and he plans to continue it and try to expand its reach, and will welcome new ideas as appropriate. Hodapp said he would also work to "continue to build bridges between APS and other societies, such as AAPT and AIP, in order to capitalize on resources, ensure good communication, and mobilize people.