Title: Message from the Chair
Author:
Section/SPIG: Food and Nutrition
Issue Date:
I hope this message finds you safe and well. You are probably aware by now that the Annual Meeting has been rescheduled for Dec. 10-14 in Philadelphia due to the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans and other areas on the Gulf Coast. APHA plans to follow the same meeting format as last year with section and other business meetings starting on Saturday, the 10th. The Food and Nutrition Section is planning what we hope will be informative business meetings for members. All members are invited to participate in the two business meetings on Saturday, Dec. 10, from noon to 1:30 and 2:00-3:30. This year we will also have a business meeting on Sunday, Dec. 11 from 9:30-11:30 a.m. (before the Annual Meeting opening session). The Sunday meeting will provide an opportunity for our new (and old) Section members to meet the Section leadership, learn about Section activities, and participate in Section affairs.
Program Planning Chair Barbara Laraia and Program Planning Co-chair Sonya Jones continue to work hard on the final program. We’ve only had a few withdrawals associated with the re-scheduled meeting. This is a really good sign for our Section program, and we expect to have a quality, well-rounded, and well-attended scientific program. ‘The Gendered Experience of Food Choice’ and ‘The Obesity Epidemic: Getting Beyond Individual Choice’ are just two of the exciting titles from our Section program that includes six poster sessions, five invited sessions, and nine oral sessions. Be sure to attend our Section’s first-ever Technology Theater Session: ‘Net Worth: The Impact of Nutrition Education Using Technology’!
Congratulations to our 2005 newly-elected Section Council members.
Chair-elect – Patricia Markham Risica
Secretary-elect – Deirdra Chester
Section Council – Marcia Thomas
Governing Council – L. Beth Dixon and Katrina Holt
Because of the re-scheduled Annual Meeting, all elected Section Council members will officially begin their duties at the end of the Annual Meeting on Dec. 14.
One of the priority areas for the Section this year has been to form a working relationship with the affiliates. Patti Risica has taken the lead in this area by developing a survey sent to affiliates especially focusing on nutrition and healthy weight activities and resource needs. The survey results will help us understand how affiliates operate, inform us about the activities in which affiliates are engaged, and help us develop a plan on how to work with affiliates that meets the needs of both groups.
--Charlene Sanders, MPH, RD, CDE
zen3@cdc.gov