Cottrell Scholar Conference

The Cottrell Scholar Conference helps new and established members of the Cottrell Scholar community become agents of change at their institutions and/or at a national level. The format is highly interactive and aims to engage all participants in authentic dialogue and community building. RCSA hopes the insights and inspiration each Scholar takes from the conference result in solid improvements to STEM instruction at his or her institution.

A central part of the conference is welcoming the new class of Cottrell Scholars from the U.S. and Canada, Fulbright-Cottrell Scholars from Germany, and senior scientists receiving RCSA’s Holland Award. Informal discussion time offers participants the chance to network, make new friends, and find ways to support each other in their research, teaching, lives and careers. Presentations by STAR, IMPACT and Holland Award recipients, updates on Cottrell Scholar Collaborative team projects, and breakout sessions exploring the conference theme will be on the agenda.

The 2026 conference, on the theme of “Teaching and Research in the Age of AI,” will be held July 8-10 in Tucson, Arizona. Co-chairs are RCSA Senior Program Director Silvia Ronco and Cottrell Scholar 1995 Martin Gruebele, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.