Dr. Christopher Saski Receives 2025 Cotton Genetics Research Award

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Dr. Christopher Saski, Professor in the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences at Clemson University is the 2025 Cotton Genetics Research Award recipient. The announcement was made during the 2026 Beltwide Cotton Improvement Conference, which convened as part of the National Cotton Council’s 2026 Beltwide Cotton Conferences in San Antonio. Saski, who was selected by the Joint Cotton Breeding Committee, received a plaque and a monetary award.

Dr. Saski earned his bachelor’s degree in microbiology, followed by a Ph.D. in genetics. Along with his role at Clemson University, Saski also serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Georgia, the University of Arkansas, and Colorado State University.  He has also directed the Clemson University Genomics Institute and the Genomics and Computational Biology Laboratory.

Over his career, Dr. Saski has authored or co-authored 126 scientific journal articles and has a patent pending for his team’s work related to an improved transformation and regeneration system for upland cotton.  Dr. Saski’s program is guided by the theme, “Building Better Cotton,” and his accomplishments speak to that.  Dr. Saski developed strong relationships with public and private breeders and led a Beltwide collaboration to rapidly address FOV4 with three prominent manuscripts and the public release of six highly resistant FOV4 upland lines. Dr. Saski has also contributed significantly to the development of genomic resources that currently enable cotton improvement. 

Dr. Saski is a member of the International Cotton Genome Initiative, where he also serves as Secretary, the American Society for Plant Biology, and the National Association for Plant Breeding.  Dr. Saski has received numerous awards in recognition of his impact on the breeding community and has been the mentor for many Norman Borlaug Scholars.  

The annual Cotton Genetics Research Award was established in 1961 by U.S. commercial cotton breeders to recognize and encourage basic research in cotton genetics, cytogenetics, and breeding. It is administered by the Joint Cotton Breeding Committee, consisting of representatives of the NCC, the USDA, state experiment stations, Cotton Incorporated, and commercial breeders.