Nutrition Heroes

Part of Ken Roberts’ martial arts training involved learning how nutrition affects athletic performance and recovery, which he implemented with recruits and drill instructors.

Brenda Richardson is the recipient of the 2019 Lenna Frances Cooper Memorial Lecture Award.

Stella Hall Cash is the recipient of the 2019 Marjorie Hulsizer Copher Award, the highest honor the Academy bestows on a member.

After earning a doctorate in nutrition sciences and completing two postdoctoral positions, Hall embarked on a journey to become a registered dietitian nutritionist.

For as long as she can remember, Lisa Moskovitz, RD, CDN, was interested in food, cooking, fitness and weight-related issues.

At Mercy LIFE Valley View, a group home for elderly deaf people, Beatrice Agar is responsible for all things food and nutrition.

For eight years, registered dietitian nutritionist Garrett Berdan worked in the Pacific Northwest as a consultant for child nutrition programs.

Albright has an intimate understanding of the difficult journey people with diabetes often face.

Gilbride is the recipient of the 2018 Marjorie Hulsizer Copher Award, the highest honor the Academy bestows on a member.

“I try to demonstrate organization, enjoyment, integrity, safety, kindness and providing challenging material in an atmosphere that promotes equality, respect and constructive feedback.”

Collazo-Colón is a clinical dietitian in the High Intensity Psychiatric Unit at the Central Alabama Veterans Health Care System in Tuskegee, Ala.

As a professor of nutrition, Derelian teaches students in classes such as food law and nutrition education and communications.

From the food placed on the plate to the people who prepare and serve it to kids, Hayes is a champion for school nutrition.

At the age of 7, Mascha Davis and her family became political refugees, fleeing the former Soviet Union and settling in the United States. Shaped by this experience and having traveled while growing up, Davis

For 28 years, registered dietitian nutritionist Susan Weiner has run a private practice specializing in sports nutrition, weight management and, most notably, diabetes education. In a Long Island, New York, office that is more like

For Stephanie Schultz, MSM, RDN, CD, being a dietitian at Festival Foods in Wisconsin means being passionate about helping people make better choices. Customers seek her help for everything from general information about healthy eating

What drew Miriam Frucht to the dietetics profession was a love of providing nutrition education to people who genuinely want to improve their lives. After completing her internship, she was most interested in building a

Kathleen Zelman, MPH, RDN, is dedicated to mastering the art and science of nutrition communication. Affectionately called “Chatty Kathy” as a child, Zelman earned an undergraduate degree in nutrition and dietetics and a master’s in

Many descriptors apply to Naomi Trostler, PhD, RD, FAND, from international researcher, educator and mentor to consultant, communicator and volunteer. Now, she may add another: 2016 Marjorie Hulsizer Copher Award recipient. For more than 30

As a longtime educator at Case Western Reserve University, Mary Beth Kavanagh has a passion for both science and communication. It's no surprise that she's been involved in nutrition and dietetics research for more than

Drawn to nutrition and dietetics from a prevention perspective, Dr. Lauren Au strives to fight and prevent childhood obesity through improving federal nutrition initiatives, such as the National School Lunch Program and the Supplemental Nutrition

When Carol H. Elliott, RDN, LDN, FAND, opened her private practice in 1979, few if any nutrition counseling services were available. "Everyone was surprised because I was thinking outside the box, but I think it

When Jennifer Kerner, RDN, LD, was in college pursuing a chemistry degree, her advisor suggested the dietetics program to combine her passions for science and food. Now, as a clinical dietitian at University Hospitals Case

After a few years on the job, it takes a special case to surprise many health-care workers. For Raffaele DiMatteo, RDN, CDN, a clinical dietitian at New York’s Bellevue Hospital, that surprise came in 2014 when his

In the Boston area, Phyll Dondis Ribakoff, RD, LDN, is active in the fight against hunger and food insecurity. Working with dietetic interns at Sodexo, she teaches how to reach food-insecure families through nutrition and budgeting education, and inspires them to participate in

When Angel Planells, MS, RDN, CD, decided to become a dietitian, he felt he was plunging into a “woman’s world.” He was, after all, one of three men in both his didactic and master’s programs.

Over the course of a few years, Kristina DeMuth, RD, traveled to Haiti many times. During each trip, she learned something new about the country and its people — their history, culture and diet, and

In 1999, Alice J. Lenihan, MPH, RD, LDN, responded to the North Carolina Dietetic Association’s call for Special Olympics World Summer Games volunteers. Since then, the organization has been a big part of her life:

Through her private practice, Renee Simpson, RDN, counsels predominantly African American women because, "with an overwhelming four out of five African American women being obese, I found this to be the niche I needed to

When SeAnne Safaii was in high school, a coach gave her poor nutrition information, which ultimately hurt her athletic performance. That experience, she says, eventually led to a career in dietetics. "That bad experience was

A few years ago, Sarah Mattison Berndt, MS, RD, was working as the University of Wisconsin-Madison Athletics team sports nutritionist. It was a struggle, she says, for many of the athletes to prepare balanced meals required to

Recognizing the needs of the aging population in San Francisco and armed with a passion for community health, Gloria Fishburn began her work with Meals on Wheels of San Francisco eight years ago and hasn’t

He always knew he wanted to help others, but Demetrius Willis, MS, MBA, RD, LDN, didn't have a clear vision of his future until he spent time with clinical dietitians at the oncology hospital where

Heart disease hit home for Jackie Boucher, MS, RD, LD, CDE, senior vice president and chief operating officer at the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation, when her grandmother Ruth, called her instead of dialing 911 when

In 2012, Katie Ferraro, MPH, RD, CDE, an assistant clinical professor at the University of California San Francisco School of Nursing who helps colleges and universities develop online nutrition curricula, was approached to help develop

Sarah Kuehnert, RDN, LD, CD, is a registered dietitian, but she also dons another hat — that of dairy farmer. It’s a role that comes naturally to her. Having been raised on her family’s dairy

Susan Moores, MS, RD, took her passion for youth garden programs into the big leagues when she created Roots for the Home Team®, an organization that partners with youth garden programs in diverse Twin Cities

What led to your career in nutrition and dietetics? My passion for nutrition stems from the ability to help people achieve health and wellness with food, something that has always been a part of my

Everyone loves a good success story and Lucille Beseler, MS, RDN, LDN, CDE, lights up when sharing one in particular. President of the Family Nutrition Center in Coconut Creek, Florida, Beseler tells the inspiring story

Thirty years ago, Theresa Galvin was just beginning her career as a NYC-based dietitian when an AIDS-designated unit opened in the long term care facility where she worked. Despite what she calls the "happenstance" aspect

Laura McKnight, MPH, RD, LD, just completed her 20th year of teaching at Idaho State University, in Pocatello, Idaho. In that time, she's worked her way up from adjunct instructor to dietetic programs director. When

Lisa McDowell, MS, RD, CSSD Eleven years ago, Lisa McDowell's father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. It was a defining moment in her life and career. "Pancreatic cancer is extremely deadly and my dad's cancer

Anyone who travels knows that finding healthy food options at airports can be challenging. Thanks to Jamie Shifley, MS, RD, LDN, director of the coordinated nutrition program at the University of Illinois – Chicago, things

“I’m completely committed to providing nutrition education to as many children, parents and schools who want to have the experience—either through after-school programs, summer camp, school and scout field trips, and school assemblies,” says Stacey

Gloria Bent, MS, RD, CDN It was the patients’ frustration that seemed so striking to Gloria Bent. The year was 1987 and Bent was working at as a dietetic technician, registered at Albert Einstein Hospital

Monica Joyce, MS, RD, CDE While reading about NBA star Chris Dudley, Monica Joyce had an idea that has helped hundreds of kids with diabetes. Dudley was one of the few NBA players with type

Trish Salomon, MS, RD, CD, MA The health screening was expected to be a routine procedure — something thousands of employees at the Bemis Company, Inc. complete to get health benefits. But when a man

Pamella Vodicka was used to working in the trenches, having notched years of experience as a pediatric clinical dietitian working with chronically ill children and anxious parents. And as an officer with the U.S. Public

“When patients are getting nutrition information from different sources — the Internet, their family and friends — it can be confusing,” says Michele Lites, registered dietitian and certified specialist in oncology nutrition. “It’s nice to

That healthful eating is expensive and traditional cultural practices get in the way of eating right are some of the misconceptions that Doriann Cowan, MS, RD, LD, encounters at the Community Health Coalition in Texas’

Registered dietitian Donna Martin, EdS, RD, LD, SNS, is the school nutrition director in Burke County, Ga. This rural community has among the highest child poverty rates in the United States, according to 2010 U.S.

“Often, when I first meet patients, they can’t look me in the eye,” explains Elizabeth Leong, RD, CDE, founder and director of the Bay Area Diabetes and Wellness Center in Oakland, Calif. “Diabetes is controlling

"How can we possibly create a just world if our children do not have equal access to fresh, wholesome food," asks Laura Sugarwala, RD, "or have the knowledge to make smart choices about what to

"When I told my dad I was interested in the field of dietetics, he was very supportive. His career had been in medical maintenance of hospital equipment and had come to know some of the

"It wasn’t long ago that a common perception in the medical field was that Asian-Americans didn’t have many health problems because they were not visiting the public health clinics," says registered dietitian Beverly Gor, EdD,

In the western mountains of Honduras lies Santa Rosa de Copan. This is the poorest region of the country and far from the touristy coast, yet since 2008, Bobbie Randall, MEd, RD, LD, CDE, has

“Some of these children have never seen vegetables outside of a supermarket,” says Denine Rogers, describing students at Dorsett Shoals Elementary School in Douglasville, Ga. That changed when they brought an abandoned community garden back

Just weeks after 2004’s tsunami disaster in Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka and South India, registered dietitian Martha Lynch, MS, RD, LDN, FADA, CNSD, joined healthcare providers from across the country on a humanitarian aid mission.