Alumni Spotlight
- UM Alumni Spotlight: Katie Janda-Thomte ’15
What did you study at University of Michigan? MPH, HBHE School of Public Health 2015Certificate in global health What is your current position? Assistant Professor in the Department of Public Health at Baylor University What courses do you normally teach?… Read more: UM Alumni Spotlight: Katie Janda-Thomte ’15 - UM Alumni Spotlight: Kathryn Barr ’22
What is your current position? Local Food Systems Outreach Specialist, The Common Market The Common Market is a non-profit regional food distributor that operates in four regions across the U.S: The Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Texas, and now the Great Lakes. In… Read more: UM Alumni Spotlight: Kathryn Barr ’22 - UM Alumni Spotlight: Jahi Chappell ’09
What is your current position? I am the Director for the Center for Regional Food Systems (CRFS) at Michigan State University where I’m also the WK Kellogg Foundation Endowed Chair in Food, Society and Sustainability. I’m also a professor in… Read more: UM Alumni Spotlight: Jahi Chappell ’09 - UM Alumni Spotlight: Keesa V. Johnson ’21
Keesa V. Johnson ‘21 was the first black woman to graduate from the masters program of integrative design at the UM Penny Stamps School of Art and Design. She learned the ins and outs of farming through her time at… Read more: UM Alumni Spotlight: Keesa V. Johnson ’21 - UM Alumni Spotlight: Sarah Reinhardt ’14
Interviewer: Asha McElroy December 2021 Sarah Reinhardt MPH, RD’14 grew up in a family that spent time in the woods and valued the environment and social justice. She went to undergrad and graduate school and UM and now lives out… Read more: UM Alumni Spotlight: Sarah Reinhardt ’14 - Alumni Spotlight: Karen Spangler ‘13
Karen Spangler November 2021Interviewer: Asha McElroy Karen Spangler, MPP, MUP ‘13 is the Policy Director of the National Farm to School Network. Karen’s 7 years of UM coursework (undergrad and grad) and experience both in and outside the classroom have… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Karen Spangler ‘13 - Alumni Spotlight: Brooke Kahl ’18
Brooke Kahl Interviewer: Asha McElroy Date: September 2021 Project Manager, foodNEST 2.0 Mary Ann Swetland Center for Environmental Health Case Western Reserve University How did you become interested in sustainable food systems? I studied Organizational Studies and minored in Sustainable… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Brooke Kahl ’18 - Alumni Spotlight: Alita Kelly ’19
Alita Kelly | Alumni Spotlight Date: May 3, 2021 Owner, Founder of South East Market Alita Kelly launched a grocery store in Grand Rapids that sources products first from Black, brown, indigenous, local or womxn-led farms and businesses. Kelly is… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Alita Kelly ’19 - Alumni Spotlight: Caroline Baloga ’20
Caroline Baloga | Alumni Spotlight Date: May 3, 2021 Sustainability Coordinator for UVA Dine (Aramark), University of Virginia From working at the Campus Farm to interning with MDining and serving on the food team for the President’s Commission on Carbon… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Caroline Baloga ’20 - Alumni Spotlight: Jena Brooker ’19
Jena Brooker | Alumni Spotlight Date: April 19, 2021 Freelance journalist, Detroit A combination of coursework in journalism and experience at the Campus Farm has led Brooker to her current role as a freelance journalist. Currently, Brooker is a Midwest… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Jena Brooker ’19 - Alumni Spotlight: Haley Kerner ’19
Haley Kerner | Alumni Spotlight Date: April 5, 2021 Farmer at Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, Hudson Valley, NY Experiences at the Campus Farm and in the classroom gave Kerner the exposure to the different skills and activities… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Haley Kerner ’19 - Alumni Spotlight: Carly Sharp ’19
Carly Sharp | Alumni Spotlight Date: March 22, 2021 TerraCorps member, Gardening the Community, Springfield, MA The profuse hands-on opportunities Sharp took outside of the classroom have led to her current position striving for food justice. In her current role… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Carly Sharp ’19 - Alumni Spotlight: Aaron Brodkey ’18
Aaron Brodkey | Alumni Spotlight Date: March 13, 2021 Program Associate at Big Idea Ventures, New York City The range of food systems courses that Brodkey took as an undergraduate were key to attaining his current position in supporting plant… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Aaron Brodkey ’18 - Alumni Spotlight: Naim Edwards ’14
Naim Edwards | Alumni Spotlight Date: February 15, 2021 Director of Detroit Partnership for Food, Learning, and Innovation, Michigan State University Naim Edwards discusses how his coursework and graduate studies led him to his current position that blends food systems… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Naim Edwards ’14 - Alumni Spotlight: Theresa Ong ’17
Dr. Theresa Ong | Alumni Spotlight Date: January 19, 2021 Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies and Ecology, Evolution, Environment & Society, Dartmouth College Dr. Theresa Ong is a scholar activist who found personal and professional nourishment through involvement with Science… Read more: Alumni Spotlight: Theresa Ong ’17
