Assistant Professor of Environmental Science
BDK Science Center 221
(937) 327-6484
elliotth@wittenberg.edu
Dr. Elliott is a biogeochemist who combines techniques from biology, geology, and chemistry to learn more about nutrient cycling and global climate. She teaches courses in the Environmental Science program related to the geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere (the abiotic Earth system). Her research involves a combination of field sampling and laboratory analysis and focuses on how tiny particles suspended in the atmosphere called aerosols transport nutrients over long distances to environments like the remote ocean. Her most recent work focuses on measuring bioavailable nutrients in volcanic ash from major eruptions and determining how air pollution regulations have impacted nutrient budgets in the ocean.
Dr. Elliott received her B.S. in Environmental Sciences from Rhodes College and holds an M.S. in Applied Geosciences from the University of Pennsylvania and a Ph.D. in Ocean Sciences from the Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric & Earth Science at the University of Miami. She is also an alumnus of both the Ernest F. Hollings Scholarship and the William M. Lapenta Internship programs at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Outside of the classroom and the lab, Dr. Elliott loves baking, jogging, and watching any adaptation of a Jane Austen novel. She also loves to talk about soccer- especially Inter Miami CF.
Research Interests
- Aerosol geochemistry
- Aquatic nutrient cycling
- Air pollution and human health
- Click here to read an article about Dr. Elliott’s Ph.D. dissertation work, including a research cruise in the Atlantic Ocean!
Courses Taught
- ESCI 101- Intro to Environmental Science
- ESCI 104- Natural Hazards & Disasters
- ESCI 160- Environmental Geology
- ESCI 290- Intro to GIS
- ESCI 350 - Biogeochemistry
- ESCI 380- Air Pollution
Selected Publications
- Elliott, H. E., E. Blades, H. M. Royer, C. Buck, C. Kollman, R. Kukkadapu, S. China, Z. Cheng, N. N. Lata, M. Engelhard, M. Bowden, N. Lahiri, R. L. Parham, L. Meagher, B. Angstman, A. P. Ault, A. Hornby, K. Dayton, E. Gazel, & C. J. Gaston. (2025). Composition and plume gas interaction control iron fractional solubility more than particle size in volcanic ash: Implications for fertilization of the North Atlantic. Global Biogeochemical Cycles 39, e2025GB008560.
- Royer, H. M., M. T. Sheridan, H. E. Elliott, E. Blades, N. N. Lata, Z. Cheng, S. China, Z. Zhu, A. P. Ault, & C. J. Gaston. (2025). African dust transported to Barbados in the wintertime lacks indicators of chemical aging. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 25, 5743-5759.
- Poach, M., R. Morse, S. L. Meseck, A. Alvarado, J. Reichert-Nguyen, K. McFarland, H. Elliott, M. L. Kellogg, M. W. Luckenbach, & J. M. Rose. (2024). Nutrient reduction by eastern oysters exhibits low variability associated with reproduction, ploidy, and farm location. Marine Pollution Bulletin 202, 116286.
- Elliott, H. E., K. J. Popendorf, E. Blades, H. M. Royer, C. G. L. Pollier, A. M. Oehlert, R. Kukkadapu, A. Ault, & C. J. Gaston (2024). Godzilla mineral dust and La Soufrière volcanic ash fallout immediately stimulate marine microbial phosphate uptake. Frontiers in Marine Science 10, 1308689.