WASHINGTON, D.C. — June 25, 2026 — Carrie Ellis received the 2026 Academic Achievement Award at the American Water Works Association Annual Conference and Exposition (ACE26) this June.
The Academic Achievement Award recognizes contributions to the field of public water supply via a master’s or doctoral dissertation.
Ellis’s thesis, “Electrochemical Regeneration of Manganese Oxide (MnOx)-Coated Media,” investigates a promising reagent-free approach for regenerating oxide-coated media. By eliminating the need for chemical reagents, the research expands the potential application of this water treatment technology to decentralized systems, including isolated, point-of-use, small, and rural water systems both in the United States and around the world.
AWWA gives the Academic Achievement Award to four recipients — a first and second place in the master’s thesis category and a first and second place in the doctoral dissertation category. Ellis received first place in the master’s thesis category.
“I am honored to have been selected as this 2026 First Place recipient. More importantly, I’m both excited and proud of this research’s potential impact on small, rural systems, and deeply appreciative of AWWA’s recognition– not only of this work, but also of URI’s Water for the World Lab and its ongoing efforts to advance a globally sustainable relationship with water,” Ellis said.
AWWA comprises 50,000 water professionals from across the globe. It is the largest nonprofit, scientific, and educational association dedicated to managing and treating water, the world’s most vital resource.