May 29, 2019
Dietetics faculty, students recognized at Kansas Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics annual meeting
Submitted by College of Human Ecology
The Kansas Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics hosted its annual meeting in Manhattan in April and K-State faculty, students and alumni were largely represented by the group, taking home numerous awards and scholarships.
Kevin Sauer was awarded the academy's Mentoring Award. This award recognizes an individual who has been instrumental in teaching and mentoring food service managers, registered dietitian nutritionists, nutrition and dietetic technicians, or food service employees in the workplace. The recipient also highlights the importance of nutrition and health in their organization, maintains professionalism in business practices and promotes safety and sanitation practices in the workplace. Sauer is an associate professor of food, nutrition, dietetics and health and serves as the co-director for the Center for Food Safety Research in Child Nutrition Programs, which is housed in the College of Human Ecology. He takes a key interest in the success of his students and is always willing to share his expertise and knowledge with his current students and program graduates.
Laura Summerlin, senior in dietetics, was awarded the Carrol Deane Niles Henderson Scholarship. Summerlin is a full-time student, an active volunteer, mother of four and grandmother of one. She serves as a graduate research assistant in the college and has a passion for nutrition and how it affects the body and chronic disease. The scholarship was named for Carrol Ramsey Niles Henderson, a graduate of the K-State dietetics program. Henderson received her bachelor's degree in 1948 and her master's degree in 1974 in institutional management. She was an extension agent for Leavenworth and Coffey counties for many years and in 1991, she became the first licensed dietitian in the state of Kansas.
Hannah Peterman, senior in dietetics, was awarded the McCollum Scholarship. Peterman has served in several leadership positions in the Student Dietetic Association and has been a volunteer for Friendship Meals, Cats' Cupboard and a research volunteer for plate waste studies at K-State. She works at the Derby Dining Center where she has held numerous positions including lab manager and undergraduate management assistant. She is currently a nutrition assistant at Rethink Nutrition LLC in Manhattan.
Three alumni also were recognized with awards at the annual meeting.
Ariel Johnston received the Young Dietitian Award. Johnston received her bachelor's degree in hospitality management and dietetics in 2017. She is currently employed by HCA Midwest Healthcare as a clinical dietitian and is a part-time worker at EDCare where she counsels patients with eating disorders.
Joel Morgan was recognized with the Emerging Dietetic Leader award. Morgan worked at HCA Research Psychiatric Center in Kansas City, Missouri, as the director of Food and Nutrition Services. He received his bachelor's degree in dietetics in 2015.
Cheryl Johnson was recognized with the Golden Wheat Award, which recognizes a Kansas business or individual whose actions align with the organization's mission "to accelerate improvements in statewide health and well-being through food and nutrition." The recipient highlights the importance of nutrition and health in their business and improves health care by providing goods and/or services that benefit Kansas. Johnson is the director of child nutrition and wellness for the Kansas State Department of Education. Johnson and her team administer the USDA Child Nutrition Programs in Kansas and provide leadership, training and monitoring for more than 800 local sponsors who provided 102 million meals and snacks to Kansas children in 2018. Johnson is a two-time graduate of K-State, receiving her bachelor's degree in human nutrition in 1980 and her master's degree in hospitality management and dietetics in 1983. Johnson also was named the College of Human Ecology's 2019 Alumni Fellow.
The Kansas Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is the professional association for more than 700 dietetic and nutrition professionals who strive to optimize the nutrition, health and well-being of Kansans. The state academy is an affiliate of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the United States' largest organization of food and nutrition professionals, with more than 100,000 members.