Brittanie Miller
Brittanie graduated from University of Nevada, Reno in May of 2012 with a BS in Nutrition. She enters the program with over 1000 hours of experience; of which foodservice and community experience hours contribute equally, followed by clinical aspects of dietetics. She has been a competitive tennis player throughout college. Her experiences include being a nutrition services technician/diet clerk at a regional medical center, bakery assistant at a wholesale bakery, research assistantships for projects related to development of education materials and school breakfast, volunteer distributor at two different food assistance program sites, and held a leadership position in her department student nutrition association. She hopes to work in an area of dietetics where she can engage and assist patients in achieving health, and looks to the internship to explore those settings. Her references describe her as “extraordinarily organized and dependable”, “always presents herself in a professional manner”, "willing to accept additional responsibilities …worked independently and effectively”, “mature, responsible and attentive to detail”, “delightful personality, excellent oral and written communicator”, “always positive, calm and thoughtful”, “a keen academic mind, leader (with) passion”, and “uniquely talented and well-rounded”. She looks forward to being a contributor to the program and completing her dietetics journey near her family in Sacramento.
Golnaz Ghomeshi
Golnaz graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in June 2012 with a BS in Nutrition. She is fluent in Farsi. She enters the program with over 800 hours of experience; primarily from community nutrition hours followed by food service aspects of dietetics. She is also ServSafe Food Protection Manager certified. Her experiences include working as the Childhood Obesity Prevention Intern at the San Luis Obispo Public Health Department, being an event caterer, and assisting in a children’s obesity related research study. She is interested in clinical dietetics specializing in pediatrics and lactation with hopes to become an IBCLC and work with a diverse patient population. Her references describe her as “an amazing young woman”, “able to complete multiple tasks with excellent results”, “able to adapt to new and changing situations”, “insightful, articulate, and a good listener”, “consistently demonstrate(s) her desire to make a difference”, “positive, genuinely interested, respectful, thoughtful, likable and hard-working”, “a leader”, “an asset” and “someone I would value as a colleague because …she has so much to offer”. She wants to positively impact the lives of Sacramentans and give back to the community that raised her through the internship.
Kellie Ashton
Kellie graduated from CSU Chico in December of 2011 with a BS in Food and Nutrition; General Dietetics. She enters the program with over 3000 hours of experience; largely in the community and food service aspects of dietetics. She is HACCP, ServSafe Food Protection, and Group Exercise certified, and trained in NutriKids. Her experiences include teaching nutrition and physical activity to K-8 students at CNAP, being a hostess/server at a large restaurant, and as an exercise instructor on campus. She has interest in clinical dietetics, and hopes one day to develop nutrition programs for prenatal, diabetes, and weight management. Her references describe her as “valuable to the organization”, “effective and interactive”, “creative, resourceful, and (has) ability to see a project through”, “able to manage her time and projects well and work independently”, “an excellent leader”, and “a joy to work with”. She is from the Southern California area, and is looking forward to obtaining comfort and experiences in diverse training sites and building a professional network during her internship.
Jillian Herscowitz
Jillian graduated from UC Davis in June of 2011 with a BS in Clinical Nutrition. She enters the program with over 1200 hours of experience; the majority is in foodservice followed equally by clinical and community aspects of dietetics. She is ServSafe Food Protection Manager certified. Her experiences include being a dietary assistant and dietary volunteer at two different regional medical centers, research assistant for two nutrition projects focused on metabolic syndrome, teacher to provide cooking demonstrations for adolescents, and actively participated in her department student nutrition association. She brings enthusiasm and commitment to the field of nutrition, and hopes to be a clinical dietitian specializing in diabetes. She would also like to explore ways to combine her interest in sports and health. Her references describe her as “hard-working, professional and friendly”, “consistently demonstrates professionalism, flexibility, teamwork, the ability to learn quickly, act as a leader, and effectively communicates”, “strong initiative (and) warm personal qualities”, and “consistently looks for ways to enrich her (experiences)”. She is from Galt and is looking forward to the exposure and variety of opportunities brought by the internship.
Marianne Rees
Marianne graduated from the natural health institute Bastyr University in June of 2012 with a BS in Nutrition and Culinary Arts. She enters the program with over 700 hours of experience; primarily represented by food service hours, followed by clinical aspects of dietetics. She is ServSafe Food Protection Manager certified. Her experiences include being a personal chef and a baking/cooking/catering assistant for a variety of organizations, office management for an adaptive sports program, and medical staff volunteer at a youth diabetes camp. She wants to gain a better understanding of medical nutrition therapy and apply that knowledge to promote wellness through whole food nutrition education. Marianne’s references describe her as “extremely creative”, “very professional, personable and friendly”, “ambitious, exceptional motivation and initiative”, “impeccably organized by prioritization and time management”, “able to synthesize information and communicate (them) well”, “particularly skillful at interviewing and gathering pertinent information”, and “a valuable contribution to the field”. She is from Los Altos Hills and looks toward the internship to introduce her to the vast number of unique resources available in our region.
Samantha Barnes
Samantha graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo in June of 2012 with a BS in Nutrition, concentration in Applied Nutrition. She enters the program with 1700 hours of experience; majority of which is from food service experience hours, followed by clinical and community aspects of dietetics. She is ServSafe Food Protection Manager certified. Her experiences include being a diet aide for a regional medical center in San Luis Obispo, and barista/food preparer at a café/bakery. She hopes to demonstrate the value of a healthy lifestyle and use motivational counseling to achieve success for patients. She is especially interested in clinical nutrition, and hopes to specialize in oncology nutrition. She is looking forward to expanding her knowledge, experiences and skill set in dietetics. Her references describe her as “positive and driven, even during times of stress”, “knowledgeable, competent, motivated, and organized”, “extremely well-liked and respected by (those) she works”, “someone I will be proud to call a colleague”, “a hard worker (with) a high work ethic”, “responsible and mature”, and “gregarious with an (ability) to prompt others to also work hard”. She is from the Sacramento area and hopes to give back to her home community.
Teresa Benetti
Teresa graduated from CSU Sacramento in May of 2011 with a BS in Special Major – Dietetics and a Biological Sciences Minor. She enters the program with over 3000 hours of experience; primarily from foodservice hours followed by community then clinical aspects of dietetics. She is ServSafe Food Protection Manager certified, and was an active member of the Food and Nutrition Club. Her experiences include being an assistant community health program representative for a UC Davis research project, a server and shift supervisor at a bustling restaurant, and volunteer experiences at Kaiser Diabetes Camp, Soil Born Farms, EFNEP, and WIC. She has interests in infant and maternal nutrition and public policy. Her references describe her as “hard-working and motivated”, “always punctual, positive and takes initiative”, “a team player, always professional”, “a self-starter and possess attention to detail”, and “an asset to our team”. She is from Sacramento and looks forward to working under remarkable mentors during the program, and serving her amazing community.
Jennifer McKinney
Jen graduated from CSU Sacramento in May of 2012 with a BS in Special Major – Dietetics. She enters the program with 2400 hours of experience; of which foodservice and community experience hours contribute equally, followed by clinical aspects of dietetics. She is also ServSafe Food Protection Manager certified. Her experiences include being a student assistant at State WIC, student intern at the CA Dept of Aging, server in a couple of restaurants, and held a leadership position in her department student nutrition association. She hopes to motivate the people in her community as she helps them make positive changes towards health. Her references describe her as “mature, organized, dependable and resourceful”, “excel(s) in leadership roles”, “maintains a level of personal excellence, has strong skills and is willing and able to get the job done”, “shows initiative and competence”, “a hard-worker and takes pride in her work”, “highly motivated …able to work independently in a challenging environment”, “exhibits maturity and experience beyond her years”, and “a valued member of our team”. She aims to be a strong voice in the dietetics profession, and looks to the internship to explore the areas in which to focus her efforts.
