Searles named a 5 Sigma Physicist by APS for science advocacy work
Searles named a 5 Sigma Physicist by APS for science advocacy work
Associate Professor Thomas A. Searles was named a 5 Sigma Physicist by the American Physical Society. He was among 36 APS members to receive the honor.
The 5 Sigma Physicist Honor was established in 2014 to celebrate members that took substantial advocacy actions. The APS has expanded their criteria to include volunteers across all the society’s public affairs activities.
Searles was given the award for his “substantial advocacy activity and continued communication with the APS Government Affairs and Public Affairs teams.”
Searles participated in an APS- sponsored trip to Capitol Hill in July 2025, when four physics societies advocated for programs to broaden participation in STEM fields. Representatives from APS, the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT), the National Society of Black Physicists (NSBE), and the National Society of Hispanic Physicists attended a dozen meetings with the staffers of members in the House and Senate, including key appropriators.
Searles, who represented NSBE, was joined by Gabe Spalding, the B. Charles and Joyce Eichhorn Ames Professor of Physics at Illinois Wesleyan University, and past president of AAPT; Eric Brewe, professor and associate dean at Drexel University; and Mark Elsesser, the director of public affairs for APS.
The advocates focused on the critical role federal science agencies play in strengthening the domestic STEM workforce, and how certain policy provisions in the House appropriations bills threaten that mission. As part of that visit, Searles met with staff from Representative Lauren Underwood’s (14thDistrict, Illinois) office.
“I was truly surprised and honored to receive this recognition,” Searles said. “When I participated in the Capitol Hill visits, I knew that it was important because at the time the future of science and broadening participation in science was in question. And the decisions in government at the time seemed to be made without a clear understanding of the immediate and long-term impacts.”
“This award not only recognizes my service to physics and the wider community but also highlighted the importance of scientists and academics performing their duty as citizen scientists,” he said. “It was also very refreshing to see that the work was not ignored and had meaningful changes with respect to anti-DEI policies in STEM, impacts of grant cancellations, and immigration.”
Searles joined UIC in 2021. In 2023, he was named a rising leader in quantum by the Chicago Quantum Exchange. In 2025, Searles was inducted as the 55th fellow of the National Society of Black Physicists, the highest honor bestowed upon its members. The NSBP is the largest organization devoted to the African American physics community, with more than 600 members. This year, Searles was named to Morehouse College’s Inaugural 50 Under 50 Class, an honor given to distinguished alumni whose leadership, service, and professional excellence exemplify the values of the college.
“American competitiveness in science and technology should be a priority regardless of your political stance. And it’s important to support STEM education and broadening STEM education for the future of the nation and even globally,” Searles said.