HPHD Hosts “Healthy Families” Student Conference
On October 27, 2006, the school of Health Promotion and Human Development, in an effort to prepare its students for careers upon graduation, hosted an undergraduate student conference on the topic of Healthy Families. The conference, which is completely planned and organized by students, made it possible for students to see and understand the connection between dietetics, family and consumer science, and health promotion and how creating healthy families is best accomplished using an interdisciplinary approach.
The conference offered students opportunities to listen to local, state, and nationally known speakers on various topics related to healthy
families. Cathy Solheim, the morning keynote speaker, is from the University of Minnesota and spoke on the topic
of “Healthy Families: A Global and Local Investment for the Future.” The afternoon keynote speaker, Liesel Flashenberg,
Through The Kitchen Door International, located in Washington DC offered students her perspective on “Food as Fuel for Healthy Families and Communities.”
Along with the keynote speakers, there were 13 breakout speakers who spoke on family health topics, including childcare, growing up in poverty, family extension programs,
and job searching, just to name a few. There were 250 HPHD students in attendance.
In addition to attending, students met experts and discussed issues regarding what constitutes a healthy family. Students experienced a professional conference, interacted with professionals from several disciplines, and learned cutting edge information related to their respective field.