Research Corporation for Science Advancement, America’s first foundation dedicated wholly to science, has named 24 early career scholars in chemistry, physics, and astronomy as recipients of its 2026 Cottrell Scholar Awards. Each awardee receives $120,000. 

“This is an exceptional cohort of teacher‑scholars whose innovative work fuels discovery across the physical sciences,” said Eric Isaacs, President & CEO of RCSA. “Their insights and energy will strengthen a 600‑member network of researchers, leaders, and mentors dedicated to pushing the boundaries of knowledge while shaping the future of science and science teaching in the United States and Canada.” 

Cottrell Scholars are chosen through a rigorous peer-review process of applications from public and private research universities and primarily undergraduate institutions in the United States and Canada. Their award proposals incorporate both research and science education. Since the program was launched in 1994, awardees have been selected from more than 200 institutions in the U.S. and Canada. 

This year’s awardees represent 23 different institutions in 14 different states and Canada, and this is the first Cottrell Scholar for two institutions – Bryn Mawr College and Georgia College & State University. Five of the new Cottrell Scholars have participated as Fellows in RCSA’s Scialog initiatives. 

“This class stepped into their faculty roles as institutions were still recovering from the disruptions of the pandemic, and they face an uncertain academic landscape shaped by shifting federal funding and graduate enrollment,” said RCSA Senior Program Director Silvia Ronco. “Becoming part of this vibrant community will give them a space to talk openly about how to succeed, learn from colleagues at every stage of their careers, and contribute their own ideas to strengthening the future of academic science.” 

The awards are named for educator, inventor, and science visionary Frederick Gardner Cottrell, who founded Research Corporation for Science Advancement in 1912. “Bet on the youngsters,” Cottrell said. “They are long shots but some of them pay off.” 

As their careers advance, Cottrell Scholars become eligible to compete for several additional levels of funding through the other RCSA awards such as Cottrell SEED, STAR, and IMPACT awards. Scholars meet each July at the annual Cottrell Scholar Conference to network, exchange ideas, and develop collaborative projects. This year’s event is scheduled for July 8-10 in Tucson, Arizona. 

The Cottrell Scholar community, a multigenerational network of teacher-scholars in the physical sciences, also includes senior researchers who receive RCSA’s Robert Holland Jr. Award, as well as Fulbright-Cottrell Scholars from Germany. All are eligible to participate in conferences and may collaborate on RCSA-funded team projects through the Cottrell Scholars Collaborative. 

This year’s Cottrell Scholars are: 

Ilsa Cooke 
Chemistry 
University of British Columbia 
Cosmic-Ray Bombardment of Icy Troilite: Clues to the Origins of Organosulfur in Asteroids 

Meaghan Deegan 
Chemistry 
Santa Clara University 
Synthesis of Metal-Stabilized Anti-Aromatic Heterocycles from Alkyne-Based Pincer Complexes 

William Gilpin 
Physics 
University of Texas at Austin 
Orbit Networks for Interpretable Decomposition of Biological Time Series 

Cassandra Hall 
Astronomy 
University of Georgia 
Small Worlds in Tight Spaces: Understanding the Formation and Assembly of the Most Common Exoplanets in the Universe 

Anna Ho 
Astronomy 
Cornell University 
Fast Transients: Revealing the Diversity of Relativistic Stellar Explosions 

Megan Jackson 
Chemistry 
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 
Controlling Chemical Reactivity at Gas-Liquid Interfaces 

Na Hyun Jo 
Physics 
University of Michigan 
Developing Uniaxial Stress Techniques for 2D Quantum Materials 

Jinghua Li 
Physics 
Ohio State University 
Physics of Light–Matter Interactions in Ultrathin Semiconductors for Chemical Imaging 

Zhou Lin 
Chemistry 
University of Massachusetts Amherst 
Understanding Fischer–Tropsch-Type Catalysis in Space: Spectroscopic Analysis Empowered by Generative Artificial Intelligence 

Subhasish Mandal 
Physics 
West Virginia University 
Tuning Quantum Matter: A Computational Framework for Vibrational Properties in Correlated Topological Heterostructures 

Yao-Yuan Mao 
Astronomy 
University of Utah 
Small but Mighty: Mapping out Low-Mass Galaxies in the Nearby Universe 

Arnold Mathijssen 
Physics 
University of Pennsylvania 
Bacterial Active Matter in Self-Regulating Flow Networks 

Asja Radja 
Physics 
Bryn Mawr College 
Fluid, Form, and Fluency: Octocoral Fluid-Form Interactions and Improving Math Fluency in the Physics Classroom 

Devleena Samanta 
Chemistry 
University of Texas at Austin 
Chemically Programmable Nanoscaffolds to Rewrite Biocatalysis and Adaptive Digital Resources to Deepen Quantitative Reasoning Skills in Analytical Chemistry 

Derek Schaeffer 
Physics 
University of California, Los Angeles 
Discovering Fundamentals of Magnetic Reconnection in Mini-Magnetospheres Through AI-Accelerated Experiments 

Arnab Sengupta 
Chemistry 
Georgia College & State University 
Structure-Function Relationship for Cap-Independent Cellular mRNA Translation Using Higher-Order Chemical Probing Strategies 

Edgar Shaghoulian 
Physics 
University of California, Santa Cruz 
Observers in Quantum Cosmology 

Olja Simoska 
Chemistry 
University of South Carolina 
From Pulsed Electrodeposition to Pedagogical Impact: Advancing Nanomaterials Science and Research-Based Learning in Electrochemistry 

Daniel Tamayo 
Astronomy 
Harvey Mudd College 
Understanding the Dynamics and Fates of Chaotic Planetary Systems 

Jamie Tayar 
Astronomy 
University of Florida 
The Importance of Interactions 

Erin Teich 
Physics 
Wellesley College 
Prediction and Control of Mechanical Response in Deformable Jammed Solids 

Sarah Wellons 
Astronomy 
Wesleyan University 
An Ounce of Preventative Feedback, a Pound of CURE: Modeling the Physics of Supermassive Black Holes in Milky-Way-Mass Galaxies 

Yizhi You 
Physics 
Northeastern University 
A Route Map to Open Quantum Systems and Mixed States: Insights from Duality  

Tianyu Zhu 
Chemistry 
Yale University 
Elucidating the Design Space of Photoactive Molecules Using Quantum-Chemistry-Informed Machine Learning 

Research Corporation for Science Advancement is a private foundation that since its founding in 1912 has supported early stage, high-potential basic research in the physical sciences (astronomy, chemistry, physics, and related fields) at colleges and universities in the United States and Canada.  Its focus is to advance fundamental scientific discovery for the benefit of society by providing catalytic funding for research, and by sponsoring conferences to spark interdisciplinary collaboration and encourage innovation in science teaching. It creates and supports engaged communities of early career researchers through three core programs: the Cottrell Scholar Program,  Scialog, and the RCSA Fellows initiative.