Cal Poly Pomona has received a three-year, $248,043 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to train dietetic students to better serve the Latino community. The funding will expand the curriculum for Human Nutrition & Food Science (HNFS) undergraduates, offering new courses that develop Spanish-language skills and focus on Latino culture as well as food and health issues.

“Our students are already required to take a course on culture, but
we want to provide more culturally sensitive dietetic care to improve
the health of Latinos and to give our students an edge in the job
market,” says HNFS Assistant Professor Lisa Kessler. “Living and
working in Southern California with a high Latino population, we
believe our students may want more focused training.”

Latinos suffer disproportionately from nutrition-related diseases,
such as obesity and Type 2 diabetes, as well as higher rates of iron
deficiency and poor dental health, according to the most recent data
from the 2010 review Healthy People Initiative. The study indicates
that new cases of diabetes and diabetes deaths are 50 to 90 percent
higher in the Latino population than in the non-Latino white population.

The grant, “Estudiante Dietetio: Development, Implementation, and
Evaluation of a Spanish Dietetic Curriculum,” will fund introduce six
1-unit courses that will prepare students to meet the needs of the
Latino community.

For example, the community nutrition course (FN 346) will require
students to work at least 30 hours at a local site that serves the
Spanish-speaking community. They may select from one of four sites in
south Pomona and the San Gabriel Valley: Renacimento Center, Fists of
Gold, Public Health Foundation Enterprises and the San Gabriel Valley
Foundation for Dental Health. The hands-on assignment allows students
to conduct nutrition lessons in Spanish, network with professionals in
the industry, develop printed nutrition materials in Spanish, and
create and maintain a bilingual website about their experiences.

The grant goes beyond curriculum expansion and also supports
recruitment of new students into the program, mentoring and three paid
undergraduate student positions.

Kessler is working with HNFS faculty and the USDA to develop the curriculum, which is expected to launch in the spring quarter.