SUNY Chancellor King Announces the Winners of the 2026 Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award

March 11, 2026

First-Place Winners are Jiameng Lai of the New York State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell and Mairui Zhang of SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Albany, NY – State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today announced this year's winners of the Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award. This honor celebrates the best PhD dissertations that address critical issues in our society and were authored by the next generation of innovators and researchers across the SUNY system.

"The annual Distinguished PhD Dissertation Awards exemplify SUNY's commitment to research and scholarship – one of our four driving pillars. Across SUNY, our PhD students use academic research as a tool to address important issues and make the world a better place," said SUNY Chancellor King. "This goes to the heart of SUNY's commitment to academic excellence as a vehicle for meaningful change. Congratulations to Jiameng Lai and Mairui Zhang and all of this year's remarkable honorees."

SUNY Trustee Courtney Burke, Chair of the Research and Economic Development Committee, said, "Throughout the state our campuses engage in cutting-edge research with our extraordinary students at the forefront. We are happy to have this opportunity to congratulate the recipients of the Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award not only for their award-winning dissertations, but also for their hard work and dedication to their fields of study."

The winners of the Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award:

  • Jiameng Lai, New York State College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell - "Understanding terrestrial carbon and water exchanges through carbonyl sulfide (OCS) and carbon-13 isotope." Jiameng Lai's dissertation establishes a transformative modeling framework that bridges plant physiology, climate modeling, and satellite remote sensing. Her research resolves critical uncertainties at the nexus of the terrestrial carbon-water cycles, providing the foundational insights necessary to enhance the credibility of global carbon budgets and inform sustainable development in the world's most vulnerable ecosystems.
  • MairuiZhang, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry - "Upcycling of Lignocellulosic Wastes to Value-Added Porous Materials." This work explores how agricultural and forestry byproducts can be transformed into valuable materials instead of being discarded or burned. By understanding the properties and interactions of these natural components, greener fuels, chemicals, and materials can be designed and produced that maintain strong performance while reducing environmental impact.

Jiameng Lai said, "Conducting research is challenging and exhausting, but the moment when the work receives attention and recognition makes every effort worthwhile. This award gives me the courage to pursue even more ambitious work as a postdoc."

Cornell University Graduate School Dean Thomas A. Lewis said, "Jiameng's groundbreaking work exemplifies the best of Cornell scholarship. Her recognition with the SUNY Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award is a remarkable achievement and a testament to her dedication and vision. We're extremely proud of her contributions and excited to see where her research leads in her future career."

Mairui Zhang said, "Receiving the SUNY Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award is a tremendous honor. Personally, it represents a meaningful milestone that reflects years of dedication and the exceptional mentorship and support I received at SUNY ESF. For my work, it affirms the importance of advancing a circular bioeconomy by transforming biomass byproducts into valuable, sustainable materials. It is encouraging to see my research recognized in this way, and it strengthens my commitment to developing practical, scalable solutions that valorize biomass and reduce reliance on petroleum-based chemicals. This foundation continues to guide my efforts in industry today."

SUNY ESF President Joanie Mahoney said, "The work of our PhD students is what validates our Carnegie R2 ranking, and we couldn't be prouder of Dr. Zhang for this incredible accolade. It's not an easy task to wade through the challenges of recycling and upcycling, but Dr. Zhang has done incredible work, and we celebrate him and his invaluable contribution to science."

Finalists:

  • Andrew Lindquist, State University of New York at Buffalo, "(Re)Imagining Community: Settler Anxiety, Ethnographic Desire, and Haudenosaunee Nationalisms in the Assimilation Era"
  • Maurice Petroccione, State University of New York at Albany, "The multifaceted role of glutamate at excitatory and inhibitory synapses"

Honorable mentions:

  • Rachel Furhang, SUNY Downstate Medical, "The Role of Tau Isoforms in Sub-Acute and Chronic Closed Head Injury"
  • Brian Keeling, State University of New York at Binghamton, "The Biomechanical Nature of the Human Mandible"
  • Harsimranjit Sekhon, SUNY Upstate Medical, "Engineering Generalized Protein-Based Biosensors for Molecular Detection and Clinical Applications"
  • Shuting Xiang, State University of New York at Stony Brook, "Understanding Structure-Function Relationships in Single-Atom Catalysts for CO2 and CO Conversion"

Each dissertation, along with supporting materials, was evaluated by SUNY faculty with expertise in the dissertation field and by a System Administration committee. All honorees will receive a certificate and professional development funds to support their scholarship and research.

Annually, SUNY graduates approximately 1,300 PhD students from its nine doctoral-granting campuses. Across SUNY, PhD students conduct groundbreaking research in fields ranging from engineering to English. Each year, the nine PhD-granting institutions are invited to submit a nomination portfolio for the Chancellor's Distinguished PhD Dissertation Award.

About the State University of New York
The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers, five hospitals, four medical schools, two dental schools, a law school, the country’s oldest school of maritime, the state's only college of optometry, 12 Educational Opportunity Centers, over 30 ATTAIN digital literacy labs, and manages one US Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.7 million students across its portfolio of credit- and non-credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide are nearly $1.5 billion in fiscal year 2025, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and annually one in three New Yorkers who earn a college degree is a SUNY alum. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunities, visit suny.edu.

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