The impact of schools' transition to scratch cooking and using reusable serviceware on students’ dietary intake and environmental sustainability (YEDI Affiliated)
Hannah R. Thompson, Professor
Public Health
Closed. This professor is continuing with Fall 2023 apprentices on this project; no new apprentices needed for Spring 2024.
UC Berkeley School of Public Health and the UC Nutrition Policy Institute (NPI) are seeking 1-2 students to support a USDA-funded research project studying how K-6 public schools transitioning to scratch cooking and using reusable serviceware can impact students’ dietary intake and environmental sustainability. This is a great opportunity if you are interested in gaining hands-on public health and nutrition research experience that will support schools to reduce food and solid waste. In this role, you will also gain science communications experience by developing website, newsletter, and social media content.
If you are selected for this research project, you will be given the opportunity to join the Youth Equity Discovery Initiative (YEDI) program. YEDI is a research apprenticeship and mentorship program that supplements your URAP research work with weekly workshops in both Fall and Spring semesters. YEDI creates a cohort of undergraduate scholars (usually around 20-30, many from underrepresented backgrounds) that are working on youth equity research projects, such as this one. The year-long program utilizes cascading mentorship, skill-building workshops, and professional development to provide supportive pathways into research careers, service, and leadership addressing adolescent inequities and well-being. Scholars greatly benefit from (and enjoy!) the extra training and support, as well as the professional development opportunities (including faculty guest speakers, graduate student and practitioner panels). The program culminates in a research symposium presentation at the end of the program. The 2023-2024 YEDI cohort will meet on Tuesdays from 11am - 12:30pm beginning September 19th. In order to take part in the YEDI program, you MUST be able to attend the workshops at this time. As a YEDI scholar, you will sign up for a PH198 class and receive 1 unit. This is in addition to the units you receive for your URAP research project. For any questions about YEDI, please contact Marieka Schotland at mschotland@berkeley.edu or visit our website here.
Role: Students tasks will include:
-Assist with in-person school meal promotion and nutrition education at elementary schools in Fremont, CA (rides will be provided, if you don’t have a car)
-Assist with data entry in-person in Oakland (BART accessible)
-Write news posts and Tweets about NPI’s latest research
The student will:
-Gain experience teaching nutrition education at elementary schools
-Learn and gain experience on the research process including primary data collection, data entry, and data management
-Gain experience with science communications
Qualifications: - Interest in research impact, translation of information and dissemination;
- Experience working with schools and/or youth;
- Data entry experience and/or strong skills in Microsoft Excel;
- Experience with data visualization;
- Ability to work both independently and collaboratively;
- Ability to time manage and complete assignments on time;
-Motivated to learn, very organized and detailed-oriented;
-Interested in nutrition education and environmental health;
-Interested in topics related to nutrition, public health research, health justice and equity, and/or science communications;
-CITI training for social and behavioral research is required (we can assist with this process)
We value equity and inclusion, and highly encourages students from different backgrounds, identities and experiences to apply.
Hours: 9-11 hrs
Off-Campus Research Site: Nutrition Policy Institute 1111 Franklin Street Oakland, CA 94607 (BART accessible)
Biological & Health Sciences Social Sciences