Faculty Profile

Charlotte Pratt

Charlotte Pratt

Associate Professor of Biology

Email: prattc1@spu.edu
Phone: 206-281-2189
Office: Eaton 102


Education: BS, University of Notre Dame, 1982; PhD, Duke University, 1987. At SPU since 2004.

Charlotte Pratt has always wanted to be a biologist, exploring nature in Michigan and Massachusetts, where she grew up. After taking as many biology and chemistry courses as she could in college, she decided to pursue a doctorate in biochemistry, reasoning that all the really interesting questions in biology had answers that were about molecules.

In graduate school at Duke University, she studied blood proteins and afterward conducted laboratory research at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. During that time, she became intrigued by the challenges of presenting biochemical information to college students and began writing textbooks. Following a cross-country move to Seattle, she returned to the classroom to teach in the Biology and Chemistry departments at SPU. She continues to enjoy thinking about biological molecules and showing students how these molecules work.

In addition to her teaching interests, Dr. Pratt has been active as an advisor in the Pre-Professional Health Sciences (PPHS) program, and now serves as the Program Director for PPHS.


Selected Publications

  • Pratt, C.W.; and Cornely, K.C., Essential Biochemistry, 3rd edition, John Wiley & Sons (2014).
  • Voet, D.; Voet, J.G.; and Pratt, C.W., Fundamentals of Biochemistry, 4th edition, John Wiley & Sons (2012).

Please see Dr. Pratt’s CV (PDF) for additional publications.

Charlotte Pratt

Meet Charlotte Pratt

Learn more about Dr. Pratt's teaching and research interests, and hear her advice for Biology students.

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Biology | Why I Teach

Why I Teach at SPU

Charlotte Pratt, Associate Professor of Biology

“SPU is the ideal place for bringing together intellectual curiosity and Christian faith. In exploring questions about how biological systems operate, we can’t help wondering about their Creator. As a biologist, I am privileged to understand a corner of God’s universe, but I am also called to explore my place in it. I derive great satisfaction from seeing students master the principles of biology, while we all — a community of believers — strive to understand God’s redeeming love.”