September 11, 2014

Congratulations to the following graduates of our Department of Nutrition Sciences, each whom successfully defended her thesis or dissertation.

In December 2013, Shauna Henley, PhD, defended her doctoral dissertation, “Don’t Wash Your Chicken!: Results of an Interdisciplinary Approach to Reduce Incidence of Infectious Foodborne Diseases.” Henley is now a Family & Consumer Sciences Agent at the University of Maryland Extension in Baltimore County. Her dissertation advisor was Jennifer Quinlan, and the rest of the committee included Jennifer Nasser of the Nutrition Sciences Department, Emmanuel Koku from the Department of Culture and Communication, Michael O'Connor from the Department of Biology, and Susan Stein who is now at Villanova University.

On May 22, Patricia Borrusso, PhD, defended her doctoral dissertation, titled “Evaluation of the Domestic Environment as a Reservoir for Foodborne Pathogens: Identification of Consumer Practices Associated with Microbial Contamination in the Home.” Her dissertation advisor was Jennifer Quinlan, PhD, Associate Professor in the Nutrition Sciences Department. In June, Borrusso began a Postdoctoral Fellowship with the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) Center for Food Safety and Nutrition, funded through the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education.

On June 3, Rachel Kelly (MS ’14), defended her Masters of Science thesis, “An Evaluation of Physical Fitness and Accuracy of Resting Metabolic Rate Prediction Equations in Reserve Officers’ Training Corps Cadets and Midshipmen.” Her thesis advisor was Stella Volpe, professor and Chair of the Department of Nutrition Sciences. Committee members included Patricia Shewokis, a professor in the Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, and Sinclair Smith, an associate professor and Chair of the Health Sciences Department.

On June 9, Nora Rosenfeld (MS ’14) defended her Masters of Science thesis, “Insulin and Incretin Secretion in Response to a Mixed Nutrient Meal in Adults with Cystic Fibrosis.” Her thesis advisor was Stella Volpe, and Deeptha Sukumar, an assistant professor in the Nutrition Sciences Department, and Francesco De Luca, a professor of pediatrics at Drexel’s College of Medicine, served on the committee.