Jessica Theimer selected as a Recognized Young Dietitian of the Year
COLLEGE STATION – Jessica Theimer, the new Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service coordinator for the Dinner Tonight! program, has been selected as a Recognized Young Dietitian of the Year by the Texas Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Theimer is a licensed and registered dietitian and member of the Texas Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
According to the academy, the purpose of the young dietitian recognition program is to acknowledge the competence and activities of younger dietitians in the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and to encourage their continued participation in association affairs. Those selected are considered “an additional resource from which the leadership of the association will develop at the district, state and national levels.”
Criteria for selection include an age limit of 35, active participation in national, state or district academy activities, a demonstrated concern for the promotion of optimal health and nutritional status of the population, and leadership in research, education, clinical dietetics, community nutrition and other areas.
“I’m honored to have been selected by the academy as a recognized young dietitian,” Theimer said. “I am glad my efforts toward promoting nutritional health among various groups and helping increase awareness of the importance of proper nutrition and good eating habits have been deemed worthy of recognition.”
Theimer said she is looking forward to using her education and experience in nutritional health to expand and enhance AgriLife Extension’s Dinner Tonight! program through its new revamped website, social media, healthful recipe development, healthy cooking schools and other efforts.
In a letter supporting Theimer’s selection, Rhonda Carr, who served from 2008-2014 as diabetes and nutrition manager for the Diabetes and Nutrition Learning Center at Midland Memorial Hospital, said Theimer served as an outpatient clinic intern with her at the hospital and provided exceptional service during that time.
“Jessica helped tremendously with many projects, including preparing our American Association of Diabetes Educators education program notebook, our Glycemic Control team meeting and our presentation to the Midland ISD School Health Advisory Committee,” she wrote.
Carr also noted that Theimer was instrumental in adapting the Diabetes Prevention Program training she received in Atlanta for use by hospital employees, as well as increasing participation in the hospital’s bariatric support group and teaching diabetes support learning sessions in community settings.
Young Dietitians of the Year will be recognized at the annual Texas Academy Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo to be held April 8-10 in Houston. Certificates of recognition will be sent to selectees, along with a congratulatory letter from the president of the academy. The list of selectees for the year also will be published in a fall issue of the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.