Community & Research Experience
Peer-Education About Weight Steadiness
August 2016 - December 2016
August 2016 - December 2016
I was an undergraduate research assistant for Peer-Education About Weight Steadiness, or PAWS. The program was a community based, 12-week research program that examined the behaviors and attitudes of middle school aged children towards nutrition and physical activity. I attended the sessions and assisted with or observed the various lessons and document fidelity logs. I was in a classroom of twelve students where I helped with instructional cooking demonstrations, knowledge-based activities such as serving sizes, water versus sugar-sweetened beverages, knife skills, healthy snacking. I was there as a resource for the adult and peer educators to answer any questions they may have had and make sure they were comfortable teaching the lesson. I also had the opportunity to collect anthropometric measurements pre- and post- program, conducting 24-hour dietary recalls and physical activity logs.
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Renal and Cardiovascular Disease Research Laboratory
February 2016 - May 2016
February 2016 - May 2016
I assisted Annabel Biurete, a graduate research assistant, in data entry of 24-hour dietary recalls for patients on hemodialysis into Nutrition Data Systems for Research (NDSR) software.
Warren Township Senior Center
December 2016 - August 2017
As mentioned, my grandfather has played a large role in wanting to become a registered dietitian. He is a member of the Warren Township Senior Center in Gurnee, IL, and he attends weekly exercise classes, computer lessons, and games such as bingo and bunko with the other members at the facility. Due to his strong involvement at the Warren Township Senior Center, I took the initiative to reach out to the facility manager to see if she'd be interested in some nutrition education materials focused on geriatric health and nutrition. She loved the idea and has distributed the information to the members! I have made materials that cover osteoporosis, heart health, and health benefits from specific foods such as walnuts. The handouts were made in the forms of table toppers to be placed in their game and exercise rooms and flyers to be posted on their bulletin boards. The facility manager was quite thrilled about this level of education being brought to her members, and my grandfather said he got positive feedback from his friends and peers.
Based on the feedback gathered from members of the senior center after providing educational materials, the facility director asked me to present a nutrition education lesson for the seniors. I presented on healthy snacking and aging. I geared all of the snacks towards nutrients of concern for older individuals. To make the presentation interactive, I had the seniors help prepare their own snacks and it seemed to be a hit! The presentation is linked below for your review! |
Here is a picture of the osteoporosis flyer
Here is an example of one of the table toppers
featured in their game room √Featured a fun heart healthy recipe for
American Heart Month in February |