When nutrition and dietetics students Rose Donepanya, Dottie Blanchard, and Ruby Rivera were asked to create a nutrition education lesson, they took it personally.
“We are three minority women: Southeast Asian, African American and Hispanic,” said Blanchard. “As minority students, we found that the diet, nutrition and wellness curriculum was not included in the curriculum.”
Not only did they turn around – took a personal lesson and switched it to a virtual format – they also looked at an important topic they had experienced firsthand.
“We are committed to educating ourselves, colleagues and teachers to be more inclusive of nutritional practices across ethnic groups,” said Blanchard.
Students created a podcast on increasing representation in nutrition.
Rose Donepanya
Ruby Rivera
Dottie Blanchard
“The field of nutrition and dietetics is like many health professions in that it is not represented,” said Julie Patterson, assistant professor at the School of Health Studies. “This group created an innovative podcast on a very important topic – increasing representation in nutrition.”
Patterson said that in order to be more effective as a profession, the profession must attract and retain a more diverse workforce. This podcast opens up conversations on key issues related to removing barriers that have prevented the underrepresented from entering the profession and discusses issues related to respect for culture and heritage in relation to nutritional practices.
“These students decided to build on their personal experiences entering the field and use this podcast in hopes of advocating for change,” said Patterson. “I was moved by how they described their positive experiences at NIU and how they differed from other institutions in terms of diversity and inclusion.”
Donepanya said the group learned a lot from creating the podcast and they hope others will learn from it too.
“This podcast has helped us explore more topics related to inclusivity, increasing cultural literacy and promoting ethical approaches in the health and humanities fields,” said Donepanya. “We want to educate people in family and consumer health to become more aware of cultural traditions, practices and religious backgrounds.”
Rivera agreed, adding that by sharing their unique perspectives and backgrounds in the nutrition field, they hope to create an opportunity for dialogue.
“The topics covered in the podcast – along with the resources available on our other social networks – are designed to educate and teach others,” said Rivera. “It is our goal to inspire, strengthen and sensitize future students of the Didactic Program for Dietetics (DPD).”
Listen to the podcast on increasing nutritional representation.
“The NIU faculty is becoming an integral part of local news broadcasts
