Right now, there are brilliant students from all over the world sitting in classrooms at our top universities. They’re earning degrees in the fields of the future, like engineering and computer science. But once they finish school, once they earn that diploma, there’s a good chance they’ll have to leave our country. Think about that…We’re giving them all the skills they need, then we’re going to turn around and tell them to start that business and create those jobs in China or India or Mexico or someplace else? That’s not how you grow new industries in America. That’s how you give new industries to our competitors. That’s why we need comprehensive immigration reform.
-President Obama at Del Sol High School, Las Vegas, NV, January 29, 2013
Diversity is one of America’s greatest assets. Attracting the broadest possible set of perspectives, skills, and ideas to our shores is critical to creating jobs, growing the economy, and keeping America on the cutting-edge of innovation. That’s why commonsense immigration reform is so important to the science, technology, and innovation community – and it’s why we need to ensure that “geeks” from around the world continue to make America their mothership.
Join us this Friday, August 23, at 12:00 pm EDT for a “We the (Immigrant) Geeks” Google+ Hangout on “Making the U.S. a Geek Magnet” – where you can meet extraordinary immigrant pioneers with backgrounds in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), who have made amazing discoveries, developed new inventions, founded high-growth companies, and conducted remarkable research. The individuals listed below will share their personal stories and perspectives on why paving the way for future foreign-born innovators is essential to keeping America globally competitive and keeping the Nation’s science and technology enterprise on the cutting-edge. And you can share your stories via Twitter using the hashtag #WeTheGeeks.
Fonte: White House