Bio Page

Jamie Dollahite

Associate Professor and FNEC Leader
342A Martha Van Rensselaer Hall
DNS
 
Phone: (607) 255-7715
Fax: (607) 255-0027
Email: jsd13@cornell.edu
View Cornell Contact Info
Curriculum Vitae

Biographical Statement:
My expertise is in the area of nutrition education for limited-resource audiences that is designed to prevent obesity and chronic disease. I lead the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program for New York State and work closely with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program--Education, both in the state and nationally. My research is closely integrated with the outreach provided by these programs. Currently, we are undertaking a community-based intervention study to build parenting skills among limited-resource participants that will support healthy lifestyles and prevent childhood obesity. This project also seeks to build the capacity of local Extension staff to work with agency partners to make community-level environmental changes. Other integrated research includes several projects designed to identify effective, evidence-based practices in nutrition education programming for the limited-resource population. These include an innovative staff training model as well as other studies of program management and delivery practices. Additional areas of interest and recent research include the development of valid outcome measures to assess behavioral change among participants in these programs; access to nutritional care for low-income people with chornic disease; and access to the food supply and factors in the food system impacting access among households with limited resources.

Current Professional Activities:

Cornell Graduate Field Membership: Nutrition
NYS Diabetes Task Force
Board of Editors of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior 
USDA/CSREES  EFNEP Policy Task Force

     

Education:
PhD 1990  University of Texas at Austin
MS  1974   University of Iowa
RD   1971  University of Iowa
BS   1970  University of Texas at Austin

Related Websites:
www.fnec.cornell.edu
www.nutritionworks.cornell.edu

Current Research Activities:

Identification of strategies to facilitate effective nutrition education among limited resource populations for the prevention of chronic disease; parenting education to prevent childhood obesity; capacity building among community nutrition professionals to lead environmental change efforts to prevent childhood obesity; access to the food supply by low-income populations and factors in the food system impacting access.

Administrative Responsibilities:
I provide leadership to the Food and Nutrition Education in Communities (FNEC) group in the Division of Nutritional Sciences. This group is currently made up of eight professional staff and two support staff, as well as part-time student staff. Administration of the program includes strategic and fiscal planning for $3.5 million/year of Smith-Lever Federal Formula Funds for the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) and leadership to Cornell Cooperative Extension educators in 54 counties plus New York City who deliver nutrition education programs for low-income audiences, including EFNEP and the Supplemental Food Assistance Program--Education. Local staff include 70 professional nutrition educators and 272 paraprofessional educators. The Food and Nutrition Education in Communities campus staff train professional staff; assist with training of paraprofessional staff; review and develop educational resources; conduct regular site-visits to provide technical assistance and assure program compliance; and evaluate program output and outcomes.  

Selected Publications:

Dollahite J, Kenkel D, Thompson CS. An economic evaluation of the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program. J Nutr Educ Behav 2008;40:134-143.

Webber CB, Dollahite JS. Attitudes and behaviors of low-income food heads of households towards sustainable food systems concepts. J Hunger Environmental Nutr. 2008;3:186-205.

Webber CB, Sobal J, Dollahite JS. Physical disabilities and food access among limited resource households. Disability Studies Quarterly 2007;27(3) www.dsq-sds.org.

Dickin KL, Dollahite JS, Habicht JP. Behavior change among EFNEP beneficiaries is higher in well-managed sites where front-line nutrition educators value the program. J Nutr. 2005;135:2199-2205.

Dollahite J, Nelson J, Frongillo E, Griffin M. Building Community Capacity Through Enhanced Collaboration in the Farmers Market Nutrition Program. J. Agriculture and Human Values. 2005;22:339-354.

Conrey E, Frongillo E, Dollahite J, Griffin M. (2003) Integrated program enhancements increased utilization of FarmersMarket Nutrition Program. J. Nutr. 133:1841-1844.

Dollahite J, Olson C, Scott-Pierce M. (2003) The impact of nutrition education on food insecurity among low-income participants in EFNEP. Family Consumer Sci Res J. 32:127-139.

Dollahite J, Scott-Pierce M. (2003) Outcomes of individual vs. group instruction. J Extension. 41(2).

Pelletier D, Kraak V, Dollahite J. (2002) Food, health, and nutrient supplements: beliefs among food stamp eligible women and implications for food stamps policy. Family Econ Nutr Rev. 14:21-35.

Hosig K, Dollahite J, Rodibaugh R, White KA. (1998) Development and evaluation of a consortium to support a school-based community nutrition education program in the rural Arkansas Delta. J Nutr Educ. 30:281-288.

Dollahite J, Hosig KW, White KA, Rodibaugh R, Holmes TM. (1998) Impact of a school-based community intervention program on nutrition knowledge and food choices in elementary school children in the rural Arkansas Delta. J Nutr Educ. 30:289-301.

Current Extension Activities:

Programs conducted through the Food and Nutrition Education in Communities programs of Cornell Cooperative Extension, including the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program--Education. Current effort is focused on Collaboration for Health, Activity, and Nutrition in Childrens Environments, a childhood obesity prevention program. These USDA funded programs are aimed at enabling participants and their families to improve food choices and health in the context of limited resources and associated barriers.

Member of the Cornell NutritionWorks team, bringing professional development to the doorstep for community nutrition practitioners who want to integrate research into practice.



The information on this bio page is taken from the CHE Annual Report.