Announcing the 2026 Constellation Awards

After carefully reviewing 980 applications from 1,317 students, we are thrilled to announce the first of our Genes in Space 2026 awardees - our Constellation Award winners! This year’s competition received entries from 369 schools in 40 states and territories, the most in our program’s history. We continue to be awed by the creativity of our young scientists and know that it would not be possible without the amazing teachers who inspire them.

The Constellation Award is given to the schools with the highest number of student proposals in each of five U.S. regions. Each of our Constellation Award schools will receive a DNA Discovery System, enabling them to continue bringing the excitement of ISS-inspired space biology to their classrooms!

2026 Constellation Awards

Awarded to the schools responsible for the most submissions in their regions, the Constellation Awards honor a school's collective enthusiasm for space biology. Constellation Awardees receive a biotechnology prize package that includes some of the same biotechnology tools used aboard the International Space Station.

The 2026 Constellation Awardees are:

• Northeast: The Bronx School of Science in the Bronx, NY
• Southeast: Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology in Lawrenceville, GA
• Midwest: Poland Seminary High School in Poland, OH
• Southwest: Baylor College of Medicine Academy at Ryan in Houston, TX
• West: Campus Middle School in Greenwood, CO

To our Constellation Awardees, congratulations! And to all our 2026 contestants, stay tuned! On Wednesday, we will announce our Junior Scientist Award winners. And later this week, we will announce our Semifinalists, who are in the running for Finalist and Honorable Mention Awards.