Alessandra Leri

Title

Professor of Chemistry

Department

Natural Sciences

Email

aleri@mmm.edu

Phone

212-517-0661

About

Alessandra Leri teaches courses in organic chemistry, general chemistry, and environmental science. Prof. Leri’s research interests include biogeochemistry, urban environmental science, and chemical education. Her work in organic geochemistry has helped to overturn the long-established paradigm of halogens as unreactive inorganic elements in terrestrial and marine environments.

Prof. Leri’s research group, composed entirely of MMC undergraduates, is actively working on a variety of projects, including bacterial analysis of the built environment in NYC, biogeochemistry of peat cores (which are important global reservoirs of carbon), and chemical composition of recyclable plastics. She has brought many students to the synchrotron facility at Brookhaven National Laboratory on Long Island for experimental “beamtimes.” Her students have presented their results at various undergraduate research symposia and earned an impressive list of accolades.

Degree(s)

Ph.D., Chemistry, Princeton University (NSF Graduate Research Fellow)

M.A., Italian, University of Virginia

B.S., Chemistry, magna cum laude, College of William and Mary

Recent Work

* denotes MMC student co-author

Teaching

General Chemistry I-II and associated labs

Organic Chemistry I-II and associated labs

Chemistry and the Environment

Energy and Climate Change

Environmental Science

Environmental Science with an Ethical Perspective

New York City: The Urban Ecosystem (freshman seminar)

Senior Seminar 

Professional Experience

Peer Reviewing

  • Journals: Biogeosciences, Chemical Geology, Chemosphere, Continental Shelf Research, Deep-Sea Research Part I, Environmental Science and Technology, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Journal of Chemical Education, Science of the Total Environment

  • Funding Agencies: Department of Energy-Biological and Environmental Research, National Science Foundation

  • Synchrotron Facilities:  Canadian Light Source, Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Light Source 

Recent Service to MMC

  • Chair, Department of Natural Sciences, 2022-2023
  • Coordinator, Environmental Studies Program, 2014-2023
  • Departmental Website Coordinator, 2013-2023
  • Liaison to the Environmental Consortium of Colleges and Universities, 2015-2023
  • Member, Academic Standing Committee, 2010-2022
  • Member, Barry Commoner Lecture Series Committee, 2010-2023
  • Member, Committee on Promotion and Tenure, 2016-2018, 2019-2020
  • Member, Honors Day Committee, 2016-2018
  • Faculty Advisor, Science Society, 2008-2011, 2014-2015, 2020-2022

Location

Carson Hall, Room 603