The Genetics Society of America is pleased to announce the 2026 recipients of its GSA Awards, which honor distinguished service and achievement in the field of genetics. Nominated by their peers and selected by the GSA Board of Directors, this year’s awardees will be recognized with dedicated profiles published on this blog in the coming months.
Additionally, a series of virtual awards seminars will highlight the careers and contributions of awardees. The 2026 recipients are recognized for a wide range of impactful achievements, including scientific discovery, mentorship, community resource creation, and education.
The 2026 award recipients are:
Elizabeth W. Jones Award
For excellence in education
Brian Donovan
Brian Donovan is being recognized for his extensive educational efforts in the field of genetics, including the development of a Human Genomics Education (HGE)-based curriculum to teach students about human population genetics while challenging false biological assumptions that gender and racial inequality are genetically determined, and emphasizing the model, and The award also celebrates her engagement with diverse communities in science education and her work to identify the impact of genetics instruction on the inclusion of students from disadvantaged backgrounds in genetics classrooms. Donovan’s efforts document how the genetics curriculum describes and explains human differences.
Genetics Society of America Early Career Medal
For outstanding contributions to the field of genetics
Moisés Expósito-Alonso
University of California, Berkeley
Moisés Expósito-Alonso is being recognized for pioneering research on evolutionary adaptation, genomic architecture of climate adaptation, rapid evolution in near-natural long-term experiments, and loss of genetic diversity in species. The award also celebrates Moisés’ leadership in an international outdoor setting. Arabidopsis His commitment to the experimental evolution project GrENE-net.org, and his mentorship of students at the University of California, Berkeley, as well as science communication work in international bioconservation forums.
Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal
For lifetime contribution to the field of genetics
Judith Kimble
University of Wisconsin–Madison
Judith Kimble is being honored for a lifetime of scholarly service that has shaped our understanding of stem cell regulation in animals and for her insightful services that have significantly influenced research policy, training and equity in science. This award celebrates scientific discoveries that define the first stem cell niche and its regulation of germline stem cells, molecular mechanisms of Notch signaling, PUF RNA binding proteins as conserved RNA regulators, PUF protein partnerships that pattern self-renewal and differentiation, a mechanism defined by SYS-1/β-catenin, as well as contributions to Wnt signaling more broadly. She is also recognized for her service to the genetics community as a past president of GSA and in leadership roles in other scientific societies. His continued research funding and commitment to basic science, exemplified by his work influencing policy decisions during the Obama administration, is commendable. Kimble’s mentoring of students, postdocs, and junior and mid-career colleagues at his institution and around the world, and his support of independent and creative thinking, are also highly celebrated.
George W. Biddle Award
For outstanding contributions to the community of genetics researchers
Aaron Mitchell
University of Georgia
Aaron Mitchell is being recognized for his extensive scientific contributions working on budding yeast and pathogenic fungi to elucidate the genetic networks controlling meiosis and pH sensing, including developing genetic approaches that have transformed the field through their application to elucidate pH sensing, biofilm formation, and pathogenesis. The award also celebrates Mitchell’s commitment to diversifying the academic environment by supporting women and students from underrepresented backgrounds, particularly through her co-founding and leadership of the MBL Molecular Mycology Course (MOMY), which has revolutionized the study of fungi that cause human infections using yeast genetics.
Edward Nowitsky Prize
For exceptional creativity and intellectual ingenuity in genetics research
Michael O’Connor
University of Minnesota
Michael O’Connor is being recognized for his pioneering work in developing molecular genetic tools for artificial chromosome engineering, and his pioneering work on elucidating the molecular mechanisms and developmental roles of the TGFb and ecdysone signaling pathways. Drosophila Development Early in his career, he developed a method to construct large fragments of DNA in low-copy-number vectors and connect the sequences within these large inserts by homologous recombination. This was the first example of a BAC (Bacterial Artificial Chromosome) and a mechanism for manipulating BAC content (reassembly). Next, he used genetic, molecular, and computational tools to elucidate how BMP gradients form in the embryonic extracellular space to define cell fates within the embryonic hemisphere. Subsequent work focused on understanding the developmental roles of activin signaling demonstrated that this branch of the TGF beta family controls body size, tissue scaling, and physiologic homeostasis. The award also celebrates his work to identify the P450 enzymes encoded by the “Halloween” genes and sequence them in a biosynthetic pathway that synthesizes the steroid hormone ecdysone from dietary cholesterol. Additional studies to understand how ecdysone peaks are produced lead to discovery. Drosophila elucidation of PTTH and the PTTH signal transduction pathway as well as identification of a novel role for PTTH in promoting larval light avoidance, thereby improving conditions for adult development. Finally, he used a genome-wide RNAi screen to discover a new steroid transport system. This was a paradigm shift that overturned the textbook view that steroid hormones simply diffuse across membranes to enter and exit cells.
Genetics Society of America Medal
For outstanding contributions to the field of genetics
Joseph Schechter
University of Strasbourg
Joseph Schechter is being recognized for his influential contributions to the field through the study of population genomics in models. Saccharomyces cerevisiae and other less studied species, the genetic basis and architecture of complex traits, and the evolution of mitochondrial genomes in yeast. The award also celebrates Schechter’s work leading the 1000 Yeast Genomes Project, which has provided a reference framework for the study of genetic diversity and domestication, and efforts to train and support a diverse group of early career scientists.
Genetics Society of America Mentorship Award
For excellence in partnership under the auspices of geneticists
Irene Topalido
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Irini Topalidou is being recognized for mentoring more than 30 trainees who have gone on to graduate school, medical school, postdoc fellowships, faculty positions, and launching biotech careers. The award also celebrates her published work on mentoring, STEM education, and career choices in publications. Science And The natureas well as its commitment to highlighting the challenges faced by trainees and improving mentoring practices and career guidance.
