Jennifer L. Tank, the Ludmilla F., Stephen J. and Robert T. Galla Professor of Biological Sciences at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, is the recipient of the 2026 Award of Excellence from the Society for Freshwater Science. Considered the society’s highest honor, the award is presented annually to an individual who has made exceptional and career-long contributions to the field.
A Notre Dame faculty member since 2000, Dr. Tank currently directs the Notre Dame Environmental Change Initiative. Her research on the ecology and biogeochemistry of streams has addressed some of the most pressing questions in freshwater ecology and influenced policies relating to stream management. Throughout her career, she has published more than 220 peer-reviewed articles, which have garnered nearly 25,000 citations.
Dr. Tank is a graduate of Michigan State University, where she majored in zoology. She earned a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in ecology from Virginia Tech and served as a postdoctateoral scholar on the first Lotic Intersite Nitrogen experiment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee.