Makenna Parkinson

Makenna is a third-year Ph.D. student co-advised by Professor John Fortner and Professor Menachem Elimelech. Her research focuses on the development of oriented covalent organic framework membranes for highly selective and ultrafast ion transport. Her work spans selective molecular separations to lithium-ion batteries. Makenna received her B.S. in engineering with an emphasis in environmental analysis from Harvey Mudd College in Claremont, California. While pursuing her undergraduate degree, Makenna worked in Professor Albert Dato’s Energy and Nanomaterials Lab at Harvey Mudd, where she conducted research on the wettability properties of gas-phase-synthesized graphene and developed an interest in combining materials science and environmental engineering to improve water quantity and quality globally. Outside of the lab, Makenna enjoys springboard diving and taking barre, pilates, and yoga classes. She also loves taking her two dogs to the beach when she’s back home in San Luis Obispo, California.