Elissia Franklin, PhD

Dr. Elissia Franklin is a scientist dedicated to advancing environmental health and beauty justice. She joined Silent Spring Institute in 2021, bringing expertise in non-targeted analysis using mass spectrometry-based approaches to biomonitoring and consumer product assessment research. Her work focuses on uncovering and addressing chemical exposure injustices experienced by Black women and other marginalized groups. Through her research, Dr. Franklin contributes to the development of intervention strategies and safer alternatives while supporting community research and empowerment. 

She earned her PhD in Analytical Chemistry from Purdue University, where her dissertation, "Incorporation of the Paternò–Büchi reaction into mass spectrometry-based systems for lipid structural characterization," advanced innovative techniques for non-targeted lipid analysis, with implications for biomarker discovery in diseases like type II diabetes. 

Dr. Franklin studied at Tsinghua University's Department of Chemistry as a Visiting Senior Research Scholar, where she developed a method to probe lipid carbon-carbon double bonds using liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry for non-targeted structural elucidation. She finished a postdoc at Purdue developing gas-phase methods for the characterization of lipids. 

She received a BS in Chemistry, graduating with honors, from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. As an undergraduate, she worked as a research assistant studying drug discovery for myotonic dystrophy type I, an inherited form of muscular dystrophy that may cause weakening muscles and challenges with other body systems. 

Dr. Franklin’s commitment to empowering marginalized communities extends beyond the lab. Through her podcast, The Research Her, she amplifies research and solutions addressing health disparities affecting Black families, while elevating underrepresented voices in science. She also actively engages in creating digital communities, promoting STEM careers, and translating her scientific knowledge into practical, actionable solutions.

Learn more about Dr. Franklin's research and activities on her ORCID profile.