All five students in the USF College of Public Health (COPH) integrated MPH/dietetics internship program recently attended the Food and Nutrition Conference Expo (FNCE) in Denver in October.

The FNCE is hosted by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, a professional organization of nutrition and dietetics practitioners headed by Dr. Lauri Wright, director of nutrition programs at the COPH and a USF alum. It is the largest meeting of food and nutrition experts and registered dietitians in the world.

The USF COPH dietetic internship program integrates an MPH degree with a concentration in nutrition and dietetics with a supervised practice element designed to help students meet the standards of education and core competencies of registered dietitians.

This is the second time Maura Fowler, one of the five interns, has attended the FNCE.

“That first FNCE motivated me to pursue my MPH over an MS (which ultimately led me to USF) because I realized how passionate I was about advocacy in the role of a dietitian and how they are an essential part of the medical and community fields of practice,” Fowler said.

Fowler said she spent her time at the conference attending lectures and networking events and volunteering as a student liaison for the organization’s Renal Practice Group (renal dietitians are experts in nutrition and diet for people with kidney diseases).

“I loved attending FNCE, and I cannot wait to attend next year in Minnesota! This is a great learning opportunity for students,” Fowler said. “Colleges promote their internships, which was very important to me last year. They also have student learning programs and offer help with resumes. Hearing the current research is also very important—it has helped me develop a deeper passion for the things I learned about in my curriculum.”

Brianna Paul, another of the interns, said she appreciated the networking opportunities the conference provided as well as the lectures shedding light on the latest advances in nutrition.

“It was eye-opening to listen to all the latest research from around the world,” she said. “I attended many different lectures on topics I was interested in, including a lecture regarding the effects of ultra-processed foods in our diets and how the research has been changing over the past few years.”

Paul said one of the highlights for her was exploring the different booths and the products they offered.

“I enjoyed the expo the most because it was interactive and many of the booths had fun little activities such as trivia, free samples, contests to win a big prize, photo ops and networking booths with some of the social media influencer dietitians,” she noted.

Paul said one of the biggest things she took away from this year’s FNCE was inspiration.

“Overall, I loved the FNCE and I’m looking forward to attending next year’s conference,” she commented. “As a soon-to-be registered dietitian, this conference exposed me to different nutrition fields. Everyone had a passion for their work, which has inspired me to want to make a difference in future years advocating for this profession.”

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health