UAF PhD Student Elizabeth Whitney Receives Prestigious Troth Yeddha’ Award

The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) is celebrating a major milestone as Elizabeth Whitney, PhD student and member of the New Frontiers of Sound (NewFoS) community, has been awarded the Troth Yeddha’ Award.

The award is designed to support PhD retention and strengthen UAF’s advancement toward R1 research status—a designation for universities with very high research activity. Currently classified as an R2 institution, UAF is working to increase research expenditures and the number of doctoral degrees awarded, both of which are key benchmarks in the transition to R1.

This achievement was made possible through the efforts of Dr. Falk Huettmann, UAF Research Lead for NewFoS, who co-applied for the award in support of Whitney’s continued academic success.

Whitney’s research focuses on environmental sensing, contributing innovative approaches that expand understanding of natural systems and align with NewFoS’s mission to pioneer acoustic-based technologies for science and society.

“Elizabeth’s recognition with the Troth Yeddha’ Award is both a personal achievement and a reflection of UAF’s growing research excellence,” said Dr. Huettmann. “It underscores the impact of our students and the importance of supporting PhD researchers as UAF advances toward R1 status.”

NewFoS congratulates Elizabeth Whitney, Dr. Huettmann, and the entire UAF team on this accomplishment, which highlights both individual excellence and the collective progress of the university’s research community.