Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition
Extension
Colorado State University
Fort Collins, CO 80523-1571
Healthy Heart Beats
January-March 2008
Vol 30, Issue 1
Spotlight
Katie Rogers, M.S., R.D.
Katie Rogers, M.S., R.D., joined the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition in December 2006 as a Research Associate for the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP). Currently, EFNEP state staff is working on a variety of projects. The most recent project written in conjunction with California EFNEP reflects a new, innovative nutrition education curriculum for use in teaching EFNEP adult participants. The curriculum is set to be released for use in early 2008 by many EFNEP programs across the country.
EFNEP state staff is also involved in two separate multi-state research projects: Healthy Toddlers and Healthy Baby, Healthy Me. The intervention for Healthy Toddlers is focused on educating parents to teach their toddlers healthy eating habits such as consuming healthy foods and beverages, eating a variety of foods, eating appropriate portion sizes and using mealtimes as opportunities for families to be together.
Researchers for the Healthy Baby, Healthy Me project utilize the EFNEP model to teach pregnant women important information and behaviors regarding food safety during pregnancy. Pregnant women are at higher risk of getting food borne illness which can then be passed along to the baby possibly causing congenital defects and even involuntary abortion. The goal of this intervention is to reduce these risks for the EFNEP population. EFNEP staff is also in the beginning stages of a research project which examines the effect of omega-3 fats taken during pregnancy on baby's neurological development.
Katie received a Master's of Science from the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at Colorado State University (CSU) in the summer of 2006. Her graduate work involved reviewing various adult EFNEP curricula used around the country that had been updated with the 2005 Dietary Guidelines and MyPyramid for possible future use in the Colorado EFNEP program. It was this research that spawned EFNEP in California and Colorado to write a new curriculum. Katie's primary interest is nutrition education for limited resource adults and youth. She also is concerned with the impact of food and nutrition on the environment. Later this year Katie will officially begin her Ph.D. graduate program at CSU.
A native of Loveland, Colorado, Katie enjoys outdoor activities such as camping, hiking, boating, skiing and snowshoeing. She loves the mountains and is grateful that she has found a job that allows her to stay in the beautiful state of Colorado.
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