The IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society in Its 75th Year: A historical overview

The IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society (AP-S) in 2024 is 75 years old. This article describes the evolution of the Society from 1949 up to its 75th anniversary. The AP-S has come a long way since its beginning in 1949. From a mainly male Society to its present-day makeup, it has had four women presidents and is encouraging younger members through scholarships and activities, such as Women in Engineering (WIE) and Young Professionals (YPs). Another major change has been the internationalization of the Society from North American to having members distributed across the globe. This is also reflected in now holding its annual IEEE conferences in other countries. The strength of AP-S technical content is measured by the success of the Society’s transactions, which ranks in the top three of all IEEE publications by downloads, and the creation of four other Society publications. The growth of the Society since the early 2000s and its solid financial position are driven by the wireless revolution and the use of electromagnetics and radiation in a wide range of applications.