Registered Dietitian Nutritionist - Zipongo Health Provider Group - Remote
(2025-05 - 2026-05)
- Empowered clients to improve gut health and support mental well-being through evidence-based nutrition, physical activity, sleep hygiene, and stress management strategies.
- Applied integrative and functional nutrition principles to improve client health outcomes by supporting the gut microbiome and optimizing the gut–brain axis.
- Provided individualized medical nutrition therapy, emphasizing prebiotics, probiotics, and psychobiotic-supporting foods to promote mental wellness and digestive health.
- Conducted comprehensive intake interviews and nutrition assessments to evaluate patient history, identify needs, and develop individualized nutrition care plans.
- Provided personalized telehealth nutrition counseling tailored to each patient's health goals, preferences, and lifestyle.
- Deliver practical, culturally sensitive nutrition guidance and monitor patient progress to support sustainable behavior change and goal attainment.
Senior Technical Advisor - USDA, Food and Nutrition Service - Dallas, Texas
(2024-04 - 2025-04)
- Served as the Regional Project Manager for the implementation of Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer (S-EBT) Program, a newly established federal nutrition assistance program, providing strategic leadership from planning through execution across multiple states and territories.
- Directed comprehensive project planning, coordination, and implementation activities, establishing project timelines, monitoring milestones, and ensuring timely completion of critical deliverables and federal submissions.
- Managed program budgets and financial oversight, ensuring compliance with federal cost principles, allowable costs, and fiscal accountability requirements.
- Oversaw data management processes, including data collection, analysis, quality assurance, and reporting to support program integrity, performance monitoring, and informed decision-making.
- Provided technical assistance and client support to state agencies and program partners, resolving complex implementation issues and ensuring compliance with federal regulations and guidance.
- Built and maintained strong partnerships with internal and external stakeholders, including federal, state, tribal, and local agencies, to coordinate implementation efforts, promote collaboration, and achieve program objectives.
- Facilitated cross-functional collaboration among policy, operations, financial management, information technology, and program staff to ensure seamless program implementation and successful launch of the S-EBT initiative.
- Monitored project risks, identified barriers to implementation, and developed solutions to keep the program on schedule while meeting federal performance and accountability standards.
- Administered $50M in federal funding, reviewing grant performance reports, tracking financial disbursements, evaluating program outcomes, and ensuring grantee milestones were achieved on schedule.
- Directed end-to-end oversight of grantee compliance, performance monitoring, and evaluation activities, resolving complex operational challenges while strengthening program integrity.
- Partnered with grantees to translate policy requirements into effective programming that expanded equitable access to nutritious foods for children during summer meal programs.
- Applied expertise in program integrity, eligibility systems, risk-based oversight, and evaluation methodologies to improve program performance and ensure fiscal stewardship across multiple jurisdictions.
Branch Chief, School Nutrition Programs - USDA, Food and Nutrition Service - Dallas, Texas
(2012-09 - 2024-04)
- Directed regional oversight of child nutrition programs and nutrition programming initiatives, ensuring compliance with federal requirements and alignment with strategic performance objectives.
- Managed complex nutrition program initiatives and evaluation projects, ensuring alignment with federal priorities, performance goals, and accountability standards.
- Supervised and provided leadership to a team of staff, setting priorities, assigning work, coaching employees, monitoring performance, and fostering collaboration to ensure successful program implementation.
- Oversaw the USDA Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program, managing the grant review, ranking, selection, monitoring, and evaluation processes to increase access to local foods in child nutrition programs and improve child health outcomes.
- Conducted policy and regulatory research on nutrition assistance accessibility barriers, identifying systemic gaps and providing evidence-based recommendations to improve program delivery and participant access.
- Developed and implemented monitoring and evaluation frameworks to assess program effectiveness, measure outcomes, identify risks, and support continuous quality improvement.
- Built and maintained strategic partnerships with state agencies, Tribal governments, retailers, academic institutions, and community stakeholders to strengthen nutrition programming and service delivery.
- Provided expert technical assistance and regulatory guidance to state agencies, school districts, and Tribal organizations, promoting consistent program administration and compliance.
- Directed comprehensive compliance reviews, monitoring activities, and program evaluations of federal and state operations, identifying high-risk issues and implementing corrective actions plans (CAP) that strengthened program integrity.
- Prepared executive-level reports, research summaries, and policy analyses, translating complex program data into actionable recommendations for senior leadership.
- Leveraged data analytics, program assessments, research findings, and performance metrics to identify trends, mitigate risks, and drive continuous improvement across nutrition assistance programs.
