Manhattan NAE Engineer Alumnus Passes Away

Charles O'Melia, Ph.D., an environmental engineering professor at the Johns Hopkins University and a leading water treatment researcher, passed away on Dec. 16. As a 1955 bachelor’s in civil engineering graduate of Manhattan College and generous donor to the College, O’Melia’s dedication and commitment to the field of engineering is commemorated with a plaque in Manhattan’s William J. Scala Academy room along with 16 other distinguished engineering alumni elected to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). He was elected to the NAE in 1989, which is among the highest professional distinctions an engineer can receive.

O'Melia also received a master’s degree in 1956 and a doctorate in 1963 in environmental engineering from the University of Michigan. He worked at Hazen and Sawyer Engineers and has served as a business consultant to Monsanto and Union Carbide. In addition, he had academic appointments at various institutions including the Georgia Institute of Technology, Harvard University and the University of North Carolina. O'Melia joined the faculty of the geography and environmental engineering department at the Johns Hopkins University in 1980 and worked at the university until 2007.