Two Colorado State University students were recently awarded scholarships from the Academy of Nutrition Dietetics Foundation. Lauren Rhoades and Hannah Van Ark are both master’s students studying nutrition and food science in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition. The scholarships are awarded competitively to students throughout the U.S.
Lauren Rhoades
Rhoades received the Frances E. Fisher Memorial Scholarship for the 2017-18 school year in the amount of $1000. As a graduate student research assistant in the Integrative Biology Lab, Rhoades created a nutritional counseling weight-loss protocol for a FDA-approved study in partnership with faculty. She also trains and mentors other graduate students through facilitation of study protocol with ongoing participants. She is also on the Board of Directors of the Northern Colorado Food Cluster. She is passionate about nonprofits, nutrition, finance and serving the low-income community.
Hannah Van Ark
Van Ark was awarded the Patsy Jane O’Malley Memorial Scholarship for the 2017-18 school year in the amount of $1000. As a graduate research assistant in the Functional Foods and Human Health Lab, Van Ark works on clinical research studies evaluating the efficacy of promising functional foods to improve cardiovascular and metabolic health in middle-aged and older adults. Her graduate research project is focused on evaluating the influence of red beetroot juice consumption on reducing vascular oxidative stress linked to increased cardiovascular disease risk. Van Ark is passionate about learning, science and research. She is interested in nutritional epidemiology, health and wellness as well as neurology. She favors an integrative approach that recognizes the human body as an interconnected system.
Both students are pursuing careers in nutrition and dietetics and are members of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the world’s largest organization of food and nutrition professionals. The Academy is committed to accelerating improvements in global health and well-being through food and nutrition.
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit and the only charity devoted exclusively to promoting nutrition and dietetics. The Foundation funds scholarships and awards, public education programs, and research grants and is the largest provider of nutrition and dietetics scholarships. The Foundation’s mission is, through philanthropy, to empower current and future food and nutrition practitioners to optimize global health. For more information about the Foundation, please visit www.eatright.org/foundation.
The Department of Food Science and Nutrition is part of CSU’s College of Health and Human Sciences.
