From the Editor

Thomas Rossing

The APS Forum on Education is now 15 years old. A number of changes have taken place in the Forum over the years, but the objective still remains the same: "The objective of the Forum shall be the advancement and diffusion of knowledge regarding the inter-relation of physics, physicists and education. The Forum shall provide for all members of the Society an opportunity for discussion of and involvement with matters of physics education."

The first chair of the FEd was Drasko Jovanovic at FermiLab. The first secretary-treasurer was Natalia Meshkov at Argonne National Laboratory. Oldtimers will remember the long line of distinguished officers, including the first five chairs: Drasko Jovanovic, Ken Lyons, Ruth Howes, Beverly Hartline, and Rush Holt. Others serving as secretary-treasurer have included Mort Kagan, Ernie Malamud, and Bruce Mason. Under their leadership the FEd has prospered.

From the beginning, the FEd has had a newsletter, generally published three times a year. The first newsletter editors were Stan Jones, Diandra Leslie-Pelecky, and Tom Rossing. Originally, the newsletters were mailed to all FEd members, but later it was decided to post them online only. The online archive includes all but the first year. This will be my last newsletter as editor, and I have enjoyed serving the FEd. Stan Jones also has an article in this issue.

FEd has a fine website with a lot of interesting and valuable information. However, no actual history of the Forum appears, and probably it is time to post one.

Thomas Rossing, Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Northern Illinois University, is currently a visiting professor at Stanford University.

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This letter is not peer refereed and represents solely the views of the author and not necessarily the views of APS