Opportunities Flow at Water Professionals Conference

When you’re fortunate to have high-quality drinking water flow fresh from the faucet every time you need it, you likely don’t think about the science or hard work it takes to make that happen. Unless you work at Louisville Water or another drinking water provider; then, it’s always top of mind.

Louisville Water joined other water and wastewater utilities last week in Knoxville, Tennessee for the annual Water Professionals Conference (WPC) co-hosted by the KY/TN sections of the American Water Works Association (AWWA) and Clean Water Professionals. Louisville Water was well represented with a mix of employees from water quality and distribution, engineering, metering, operations, and communications.

While the conference includes a robust schedule of educational sessions, it also provides opportunities for attendees to network and collaborate in addition to recognizing employees and utilities for their hard work and dedication.

The WPC proudly highlights and supports younger attendees who are on track to becoming water professionals. One example of that is the annual Rengao Song Scholarship, named in honor of one of Louisville Water’s former chief scientists. The 2025 scholarship will help Mercy Kangogo earn her PhD in engineering and computational sciences at Tennessee State University.

“Winning the Dr. Rengao Song Water Research Scholarship is both an incredible honor and a meaningful affirmation of my commitment to the water industry,” Kangogo said. “My research focuses on water and wastewater treatment, with a particular emphasis on contaminant removal and improving access to clean, safe water,” Kangogo explained.

Minimizing the risk of lead continues to draw interest at WPC as many utilities strive to meet the Environmental Protection Agency’s Lead and Copper Rule Improvements. Emily Fritz, Louisville Water’s supervisor of water quality and compliance, highlighted the work our team is doing to help local schools and daycares.

“It’s always an honor to share our knowledge and experiences on behalf of Louisville Water at the regional level,” Fritz said.

A Kentucky Division of Water employee applauded Louisville Water’s efforts.

Fritz said, “It’s nice to hear our (Kentucky) regulators take notice of all our hard work.”

Other Louisville Water employees shared insights into riverbank filtration and the work underway to optimize aquifer production at our B.E. Payne Water Treatment Plant, best communication practices and building our brand and trust in the community, and how we navigate social media. A panel discussion with Louisville Water’s Lady Legends all-female tapping team showed some of their challenges and strengths as women working in a male-dominated industry.

Other WPC highlights:

Lady Legends tapping team successfully tapped a water main to qualify for the national competition in June 2026
Vice President of Communications Kelley Dearing Smith recognized for the Abel Wolman Award she received at AWWA’s (national) Annual Conference & Expo in June 2025
Louisville Water Customer Care Supervisor Alicia Overall accepted into the 2025-2026 Water Professionals Leadership Academy

Louisville Water had two special connections to the annual “passing of the gavel”. Megan Talley, manager of metering field operations, moved into the role of the AWWA Chair for the KY/TN Section. The gavel given to her is made of wood chiseled from a tree struck by lightning at the B.E. Payne Plant. With that piece of history in her hand, Talley talked about the future of the organization.

“I really want to continue our member engagement, find new ways to bring value beyond WPC with learning, connection, and collaboration, and together, we can think outside the box and do things that we’ve never done before that will bring opportunities to our members,” she said.

The conference ended with a ticket to ride the Three Rivers Rambler Train. Passengers learned about Knoxville’s drinking water and wastewater treatment plants as they traveled between the facilities and viewed the Tennessee, French Broad, and Holston rivers.