The University of Georgia announced on May 5 that professors Gerald Hart and Robert Schmitz have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences at the conclusion of its 163rd annual meeting in April.
The National Academy of Sciences recognizes distinguished achievements in research and is considered one of the highest honors a scientist can receive. With this election, the University of Georgia now has 19 members in the academy. The 2026 class includes 120 new members and 25 international members, bringing total active membership to 2,705.
“On behalf of the entire University of Georgia community, it is an honor to congratulate Dr. Gerald Hart and Dr. Robert Schmitz on their election to the National Academy of Sciences,” said President Jere W. Morehead. “This significant accomplishment recognizes careers defined by groundbreaking discovery and real-world impact, and I am grateful for all they do to represent UGA and our faculty with distinction.”
Gerald Hart was a Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar at UGA with appointments at both the Complex Carbohydrate Research Center and Franklin College’s department of biochemistry and molecular biology before retiring last year. His research focuses on how complex sugar modifications regulate cellular function and disease, particularly through glycosylation—the process by which carbohydrate molecules attach to proteins or lipids—and how these modifications influence protein activity, gene expression, and signaling pathways.
“NAS is an outstanding organization that has supported research for many decades,” said Hart, who also became a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2025. “There has never been a more important time to support fundamental scientific research. We are on the precipice of great advances that will improve lives.”
Robert Schmitz is a UGA Foundation Professor in plant sciences as well as Lars G. Ljungdahl Distinguished Investigator in genetics; he was recently named a UGA Distinguished Research Professor. His laboratory studies genetic and epigenetic variation that enables plants to thrive under various conditions while developing new methods for engineering DNA sequences controlling gene expression with aims toward improving crop performance.
“I’m motivated by the discovery and opportunity to open new areas of biology,” Schmitz said. “Much of our lab’s work focuses on developing technologies that make previously inaccessible questions tractable, and those advances often drive the most meaningful insights. It’s an honor to see our approach to plant genetics recognized, particularly our emphasis on combining hypothesis-driven and discovery-based research.”
Benjamin C. Ayers, senior vice president for academic affairs and provost at UGA said: “The election of Dr. Hart and Dr. Schmitz to the National Academy of Sciences reflects the extraordinary depth and impact of scholarship at the University of Georgia… Their work exemplifies how fundamental discovery drives innovation, advances human understanding and improves lives.”
Founded in 1863 under a congressional charter signed by Abraham Lincoln, NAS is a private nonprofit institution recognizing achievement through membership elections.
Interim Vice President for Research Chris King concluded: “Election to any of our National Academies is a rare honor that goes only to the most accomplished and respected investigators in their fields… It is a testament to their dedication and contributions to science at the highest level, and we couldn’t be prouder…”
