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Cassandra Spracklen, associate professor of epidemiology in the School of Public Health and Health Sciences, has been appointed program committee chair for the American Society for Human Genetics’ (ASHG) 2026 Annual Meeting, which will be held Oct. 20-24, 2026, in Montreal.

Spracklen, who has served previously in several roles for ASHG, including as a member of both the program committee and the awards committee, was selected by the ASHG board of directors because of her standing in both the society and the larger research community.

Established in 1948, the ASHG is the world’s largest professional community driving the field of human genetics and genomics research and translation, with decades of leadership supporting new discovery and applications. Their annual meeting has grown to become the world’s largest annual meeting in human genetics and genomics with attendance of 8,000 or more each year. 

“This is an incredible honor,” says Spracklen, who is believed to be the youngest person to ever be appointed to the role. “At the end of the day, along with the committee that I lead, I’ll be responsible for planning the entire conference.”

For the 2026 annual meeting, the program committee has put in place a distinguished speaker symposium centered around the importance of incorporating population diversity across all stages of genetic research—from cohort design and data generation to data analysis, data interpretation and clinical translation.

More information about Spracklen’s appointment, her plans for the conference and her research can be found on the SPHHS website.