Elise recently completed her MA in Gender and Women's Studies with a graduate certificate in Visual Cultures at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. At UW-Madison she was part of the teaching team for GWS courses Women and Their Bodies in Health and Disease; Gender, Women, and Cultural Representation; and Gender, Women, and Society in a Global Perspective.

Elise's research interests fall under the broad umbrella of gender, arts & culture. More specifically, her work explores (self-) representations of gender, the body, and mental illness in literature and visual art. Her recently completed thesis, titled "Situating Selfies," draws on feminist and queer theory and disability studies to analyze how people navigate embodiment, identity, community, and self-care in online spaces. This project takes up selfies as a practice and phenomenon, putting them in conversation with 20th century women's self-representational photography and body art.

In 2012 Elise graduated with honors from DePaul University in Chicago, IL. with a Bachelor of Arts in Women's and Gender Studies (minors: English Literature and History of Art and Architecture).

Elise is the Founding Editor of The Ellipses Project, a multi-media project focused on advocating and exploring gender justice and feminism, anti-classism, anti-racism, body positivity, sexualities, disability, art, culture, and community.