Kimberly A. Milligan, PhD

Professor & Program Director, Department of Chemistry
Director, DSU Water Quality Laboratory & Hemp Analysis Laboratory
Department of Chemistry
Office: SCS Rm 314
Lab: SCS Rms 305/313
302.857.6534
kmilligan [at] desu.edu

Biography

Dr. Kimberly Milligan is a Professor and Program Director in the Department of Chemistry at Delaware State University (DSU). She also serves as the Director of the DSU Water Quality and Hemp Analysis Laboratories. Dr. Milligan collectively holds five ISO certifications and provides critical services in water quality testing and hemp research.

Dr. Milligan earned her Ph.D. in Applied Chemistry (2012), M.S. in Biological Sciences (2004), and B.S. in Chemistry (2001) from Delaware State University. Her research focuses on environmental chemistry, water quality remediation, and biomaterials, with innovative work on hemp-derived materials for biomedical and industrial applications. She has secured over $3 million in research funding and published extensively on topics such as PFAS remediation, nanoparticle-enhanced hemp biodiesel, and cannabinoid applications in cancer therapy.

She has authored multiple laboratory manuals, including General Chemistry, Chem Made Easy General Chemistry I Lecture Guide and Chem Made Easy Word Search & Activity Book, and co-authored peer-reviewed articles in journals such as Industrial Crops and Products and Viruses. Dr. Milligan has delivered invited talks at national conferences, including the ACS Delaware Section, EPA MSI Symposium, and Yale Environmental Justice Conference.

As a research leader, Dr. Milligan has served as PI or Co-PI on major grants, including an NIH SEPA award ($1.3M) and NSF IUSE and HBCU-UP initiatives. She played a pivotal role in establishing DSU as the first HBCU with a NELAP-accredited water testing laboratory, positioning the university as a leader in environmental chemistry and public health.

Certifications & Specialized Training

• ISO 17025:2017 Certified Lab Manager – Testing and Calibration (Credential No: 153230098)
• ISO 17025:2017 Lead Auditor – Testing and Calibration Laboratories (Credential No: 146027483)
• Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA)
• Good Documentation Practice and Data Integrity – ALCOA
• ISO 31000 Risk Management Guidelines

Beyond research, Dr. Milligan is deeply committed to student success and STEM outreach, mentoring graduate and undergraduate students, advising student organizations such as ACS and NOBCChE, and leading community programs like the DSU Earth Day Events, Chemistry for Kids, and Science Day. Her vision is to advance interdisciplinary research in environmental chemistry, water quality remediation, and biomaterials, while training the next generation of scientists.

Research and Professional Experience

2022 - Associate Professor/Co-Chair of Student Success, Department of Chemistry       

2019 - Director of the Hemp Analysis Laboratory, Department of Chemistry

2017 - Director of the NELAP Certified Water Quality Laboratory, Dept of Chemistry

2013-2017 - Founder/Director of BG Laboratory, Inc. Dover, DE

2009-2012 - NASA Graduate Research Fellow

2007-2008 - Strawbridge High School Science Teacher, Baltimore, MD      

Technical Skills

• University Teaching – Higher Education – CUREs/Active Learning
• Grant Writing
• Curriculum Development
• Qualitative Research
• Thermal Analysis: Thermal Gravimetric Analysis (TGA), Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC)
• Microscopy: Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy (CLSM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM)
• Spectroscopy: Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (FTIR), Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-MS), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Liquid Chromatography- Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS)
• Other Techniques: Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), Western Blot, Fluorescence-Activated Cell Sorting Cytometry (FACS)

Honors and Awards

• Subject Matter Expert (SME) for converting chemistry courses online during COVID-19 2020
• Certificate of Achievement, DSU Master Blackboard Training Course (2019)
• Center for Teaching & Learning 13th Annual Mini Grant Award Recipient  “Using Virtual Reality Laboratory (VRL) to Enhance General Chemistry Teaching” (Spring 2018)
• MSI-PWI Seed Grant Recipient - Biochemical Summer Undergraduate Research Experience Program (BioSURE) - Collaboration with faculty from University of Texas (RGV), SUNY, and University of California, MERCED (2018-2019) 
• Center of Excellence for Student Success Volunteer Award (2017)
• NASA Delaware Space Grant Graduate Fellowship Recipient (2011-2012)
• Center for Research and Education in Optical Sciences and Applications (CREOSA) Fellowship Recipient (2010-2011)           

Publications

• JM Patterson, K Milligan, C Winstead. Development of a QSAR model to predict molecular inhibition of human STAT3. doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.10.29.466511. November 2021.
• JM Patterson, C Winstead, K Milligan. Effectiveness of Antibiotics as a Treatment Option for Adults with Active Crohn’s Disease: A Meta-Analysis. Microb Health Dis 2021; 3: e501.
• JM Patterson, C Winstead, K Milligan. Is Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) associated with Crohn’s Disease? doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.09.27.21263960 (preprint)
• C Winstead, L Lott, K Milligan, L Hyppolite. Review: Biomimetic nanofibers in the ex vivo expansion of cord blood-derived hematopoietic stem cells. https://doi.org/10.18103/mra.v8i7.2080 July 2020.
• K Milligan, C Winstead, J Smith. Preparation and Physiochemical Characterization of Chitosan Nanoparticles for Controlled Delivery of Oxytocin. International Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research. April 2018.

GRANTS

• PI, NSF Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Education and Human Resources (IUSE: EHR): Engaged Student Learning and Institutional and Community Transformation Level 2, $591,627 (2020-2023)
• Multi-PI, NIH Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA) (R25) $1,300,000 (2020-2025)
• Co-PI, NSF HBCU-UP Transforming Education through Active Learning (TEAL) $1,800,000 (2017- 2022)
• Key Personnel, National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL) $750,739 (2020-2022).
• Key Personnel, NSF Soft Matter Research and Technology and Quantum Confinement Materials Design Partnership for Research and Education (SMaRT QD PREM). $799,058 (2021-present)
• Key Personnel, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Grant (HHMI) $1,000,000 (2017-2021)
• Co-PI, Building STEAM at DSU: STEM Experiential, Academic, and Mentoring Pilot Program at Delaware State University ($1,000,000 pending)
• Key Personnel, Promoting Green Economy, Digital and Precision Agriculture, and High-Value Agriculture in Delaware, Congressional Funding ($1M pending)

Professional Affiliations

• American Chemical Society, Member
• Delaware Sustainable Chemistry Alliance, Member
• Delaware Bioscience Association, Member
• Teacher Certification Program, Association of College and University Educators (ACUE), Member – June 2020
• Quality Matters (QM) Certification in Online Teaching – June 2020

Service

• Faculty College Online Coordinator for the College of Agriculture, Science and Technology (CAST) March 2022 - present
• Chair, Excellence Awards Committee (Delaware State University) 2020- present
• Served on the MSCHE Standard III (Design and Delivery of Student Learning Experiences) Criteria 4 Committee -2020-present
• Teaching Effectiveness Committee Member – January 2022 - Present
• Faculty Senate Alternate – Department of Chemistry 2019- present
• ADCS Assessment Report Liaison – Department of Chemistry 2018-present
• DSU Grants Transformation Team October 2021- present
• UD Provost’s Symposium Planning Committee 2021 - present
• Assisted in the development and facilitation of the University-Wide Online & Hybrid Course Conversion Training Module Summer and Fall 2020 during the pandemic
• Transitioned Department of Chemistry courses online during pandemic – Spring and Summer 2020
• Science Fair at Towne Point Elementary School 2020
• Science Fair at Lake Forest Central Elementary School 2019
• Chemistry for Kids at Delaware State University Summer Program 2018-2019
• Science Day at William Henry Middle School 2018
• Gamma Sigma Epsilon Chemistry Honor Society (Advisor) 2019-present
• National Organization for the Advancement of Black Chemistry and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE), Advisor 2019-present
• American Chemical Society (ACS), Advisor 2019-present

Teaching