Society leaders including (from left) SOT Executive Director Shawn Douglas Lamb, SOT 2012-2013 President William Slikker Jr, and SOT 2012-2013 Past President Jon C. Cook, traveled to Capitol Hill to present (center) Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ) with the SOT 2012 Congressional Science Leadership Award for his enduring vision and preeminent leadership in fostering recognition throughout the legislative community of the importance of supporting sound science as a basis for making effective policy decisions.
An active Member of Congress and a strong voice for his constituents, Rep. Holt serves on the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the Committee on Natural Resources, where he is the Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources, helping to develop a long-term strategy to decrease our nation's dependence on fossil fuels and protect our environment for future generations.
Moreover, he has won several significant victories on Capitol Hill, including helping to secure more than $700 million in new federal funding for science and technology research. Rep. Holt also is co-chair of the Research and Development Caucus, the Children's Environmental Health Caucus as well as the Alzheimer's, Diabetes, and the Biomedical Research Caucuses. He also served on the National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century.
Rep. Holt earned his BA in Physics from Carleton College in Minnesota, and completed his Master's and PhD in Physics at New York University. He has held positions as a teacher, Congressional Science Fellow, and arms control expert at the US State Department, where he monitored the nuclear programs of such countries as Iraq, Iran, North Korea, and the former Soviet Union. He was assistant director of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, which is the largest research center for research in alternative energy in New Jersey.