News & Events

Celebrating students graduating from MPH, MS, and GCPD in 2025

*Class of 2025 graduate students completing their programs pose for a group photo after the ceremony held on August 22, 2025.*

Congratulations to graduate students in the Food Systems, Nutrition, and Health (FSNH) program completing the Master of Public Health (MPH) and Master of Science (MS) in 2025. Many of these students also completed the Graduate Coordinated Program in Dietetics (GCPD) which will allow them to sit for the registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) exam in the coming weeks.

Students, with their invited guests, were celebrated in a ceremony on Aug. 22 at an event held at the University of Washington wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ – Intellectual House.

Students presented posters highlighting their work at the beginning of the event.

Marion Neuhouser, an affiliate professor of epidemiology and core faculty member in Food Systems, Nutrition, and Health, delivered the keynote address during the ceremony. Neuhouser is a professor and Program Head with the Cancer Prevention Program with Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.

*Marion Neuhouser addressing the students.*

Other faculty participating in the ceremony included FSNH Director and GCPD Associate Director Michelle Averill; GCPD Director and MPH-Public Health Nutrition Program Director Anne Lund; and FSNH Graduate Program Coordinator Cristen L. Harris.

*Left to right: Anne Lund, Cristen L. Harris, Michelle Averill, Marion Neuhouser.*

During the ceremony, students recognized the outstanding preceptors who have helped guide and inspire them, and thanked them for their mentorship.

*Students recognize outstanding preceptors who provided them with outstanding mentorship.*

Closing the ceremony, students Kate Shuhart and Evelyn Grijalva-Martinez recalled memorable moments from their experiences in the program.

*Kate Shuhart and Evelyn Grijalva-Martinez* *reflect on their experiences in the program.*

Congratulations to all of our students on their hard work and accomplishments!

Master of Public Health

An asterisk (*) next to the student’s name designates they completed RDN training in the Graduate Coordinated Program in Dietetics.

Haley Chapman*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: Developing a Data and Performance Measurement Framework for the Food Action Plan
Thesis: Food Policy Entities in Washington State: A Qualitative Exploration of Social Capital
Awards and Scholarships: 2024 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation General Scholarship, FSNH Top Scholar Award, Dora Agee Waller Scholarship Endowment Fund

Evelyn Grijalva-Martinez*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: Community Health Engagement and Nutrition Advocacy for the Latine Community in Washington State: Development of a Culturally Sensitive Nutrition Booklet
Thesis: Towards Achieving Latino Food Equity: Insights from Latino Community Leaders in Central Eastern Washington
Awards and Scholarships: ASPHN DNPAO Nutrition and Physical Activity Traineeship, 2024 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation Commission on Dietetic Registration Expanding the Reach of Dietetics Scholarship, FSNH Top Scholar Award, Edith A. Moulton Scholarship Fund, Marian Marshall Thompson Alumni Endowment in Nutritional Sciences

Laura Henson*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: Promoting Nutritious School Meals through Visual Menus and Nutrition Education Posters
Capstone: Recommendations to Improve Food Access for K-12 Students in the City of Seattle

Emma Johnsson*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: Equity Mapping of Lactation Resources in Washington State
Thesis: Affordable Nutrient Density of Aquatic Foods in the FAO uFISH Database Assessed Using Nutrient Rich Food Price Index
Awards and Scholarships: Western MCH Nutrition Partners Traineeship, Newton W. and Kathryn Adair Galley Scholarship Fund

Mariam Kayali*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: Developing a Family-Informed NG Tube Training Curriculum for the NICU
Capstone: Recommendations to Improve Food Access for K-12 Students in the City of Seattle
Awards and Scholarships: Pediatric Pulmonary Center (PPC) Traineeship, 2024 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation Dietitians in Medical Nutrition Therapy Scholarship, Ruth E. Ostrander Endowed Scholarship Fund

Karen Krol

MPH Practicum: Culturally Relevant Recipe Development for Seattle Farm to Preschool Program
Capstone: Recommendations to Improve Food Access for K-12 Students in the City of Seattle

Paulina Nuñez Esquivel*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: Reevaluating Food Ranking Systems and Developing Culturally Responsive Nutrition Education for the Latinx Community in Burien, WA: Strategic Initiatives of Alimentando al Pueblo
Capstone: Recommendations to Improve Food Access for K-12 Students in the City of Seattle
Awards and Scholarships: 2025 Washington State Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Outstanding Student in a Coordinated Program, 2024 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation (AND) Irene J. Jones Memorial Scholarship, 2023 AND Advancing Diversity in Dietetics Scholarship

Hannah Sanders*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: Launching the Mother-Baby Friendly Initiative Plus to Improve Nutrition for Small, Vulnerable Newborns in Nairobi County, Kenya
Thesis: Nutritional Adequacy of the Planetary Health Diet Improved by More Nutrient-Rich Foods: Analyses of the FAO Food Composition Tables for Western Africa
Awards and Scholarships: UW SPH Outstanding Master’s Student Award, Carrie Cheney Student Leadership Award, 2024 Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation Patsyjane O’Malley Memorial Scholarship, Dora Agee Waller Scholarship Endowment Fund, Katherine F. Jensen Endowed Fellowship

Kate Shuhart*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: WSDA Farm to School (F2S) Metrics and Reporting
Capstone: Recommendations to Improve Food Access for K-12 Students in the City of Seattle
Awards and Scholarships: Beverly Winter-Eben Student Service Award, Western MCH Nutrition Partners Traineeship

Miki Suarez-Thai*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: Impact of the Trump Administration on Youth Gender-Affirming Care in Seattle
Thesis: The Intersection of Culture, Eating Habits and Eating Competence Among U.S.-Born vs. Immigrant Southeast Asian College Students
Awards and Scholarships: ASPHN DNPAO Nutrition and Physical Activity Traineeship, Katherine F. Jensen Endowed Fellowship

Becky Vogt*

MPH Practicum and PH Concentration: Adding Raw Animal Proteins to K-12 School Scratch Cooking in Washington State
Capstone: Recommendations to Improve Food Access for K-12 Students in the City of Seattle

Clair Werch

MPH Practicum: Free Days and Free Ways to Reach Washington State Parks
Thesis: Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors on Animal Agriculture: Evaluating the Effects of a Modified Deliberative Poll
Awards and Scholarships: FSNH Top Scholar Award, Ruth E. Ostrander Endowed Scholarship Fund

Master of Science

Stephanie Du*

MNT Concentration: Nutritional Interventions in Severe Road Rash
Thesis: Sodium Intake Differences and its Relationship to the Gut Microbiome in Female Individuals with Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Healthy Controls
Awards and Scholarships: Katsumi Higuchi Memorial Scholarship Fund, Katherine F. Jensen Endowed Fellowship

Kristen Evans*

MNT Concentration: Case Study: Toddler with Limited Food Acceptance Complicated by Other Factors
Thesis: Executive Function, Eating Competence, and the Feeding Relationship in Parents of Preschool-Aged Children
Awards and Scholarships: Leadership Education for Neurodevelopmental Disorders (LEND) Traineeship, Katherine F. Jensen Endowed Fellowship

Kara Plyler*

MNT Concentration: Expanding the Registered Dietitian’s Role in Eating Disorder Relapse Prevention
Thesis: Associations Between Usual Plant & Animal Protein Intake and Select Serum Biomarkers of Chronic Disease Risk
Awards and Scholarships: Leadership Education in Adolescent Health (LEAH) Traineeship, Ruth E. Ostrander Endowed Scholarship Fund, Marian Marshall Thompson Alumni Endowment in Nutritional Sciences

August 25, 2025