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May 2014
In This Issue
2014 Annual Meeting
New Leaders to Take the Helm
Advocacy Committee Survey
Volunteer to Review the Blueprint Powerpoint
New ASPHN Success Stories
Get to Know ASPHN Consultants
Take the Healthy Meeting Pledge
ASPHN Expands Membership Categories
Share Your News
About ASPHN
2014 ASPHN Annual Meeting in Minneapolis 
Registration is now open for ASPHN's 2014 Annual Meeting.  This year's meeting will be at the Courtyard Minneapolis Downtown in Minneapolis, MN June 8 - 10.  Our theme this year is Breaking Barriers to Health: Building an Equitable and Sustainable Future.  Our speakers will focus their presentations on reducing health disparities and health inequities.
 
New this year at the Annual Meeting will be a silent auction!  Donated items come from Suzanne Haydu, ASPHN President, and Phyllis Crowley, a former ASPHN President.  Suzanne and Phyllis will be donating one piece each to raise money for ASPHN.  Check ASPHN's Annual Meeting webpage for information on the artists and the pieces they plan to donate.  You can see some of Suzanne's and Phyllis' work on their websites. 

Check the ASPHN website for up-to-date Annual Meeting information, including the most current meeting agenda.  If you are interested in displaying a poster at our peer-reviewed poster sessions, be sure to submit your poster application by May 23rd. 

You can find out about visiting Minneapolis here.  And be sure to check out Minneapolis' Facebook page.  Please note that because we are not charging a registration fee, we will not be serving food or coffee at the meeting.

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New Leaders Take the Helm August 1 
ASPHN announces new leaders elected to serve for 2014 - 2015.  These leaders will take office August 1st and will join existing Board members whose terms continue into next year.  Thank you to the Governance Committee for building such a strong slate of candidates. 

President-Elect - Kim DeDino (OH)
Treasurer - Donna McDuffie (MN)
Director-at-Large - Leslie Lewis (LA), Kimberly LaCroix (OR) and Patrice Isabella (UT)
 
Governance Committee - Sharon Sass (AZ), Tracy Miller (CO), and Lisa Borden (NY)
 
MCH Nutrition Council - Chair-Elect: Peggy Trouba (NE)
 
National Council of Fruit and Vegetable Nutrition Coordinators
Chair-Elect - Laura Hormuth (IN)

Congratulations!

ASPHN Member Survey:
Your Role in Important Public Policy Issues  
The ASPHN Advocacy Committee is requesting that you, as an ASPHN 

member, complete a short member survey.  The purpose of this survey is to invite you to become involved in our efforts to educate and influence decision makers on nutrition policy by becoming an Advocacy Committee member and / or joining a list of ASPHN members who are interested in assisting the committee in drafting comments on national policy and legislative issues in the areas of your particular interest or expertise.

 

There are several ways you can be involved:

  • Join the Advocacy committee.
  • Participate in an ad hoc committee to develop comments on a priority issue that matches your interests or expertise.
  • Listen in on Advocacy Committee calls to learn more about policy issues.

 

We also welcome intermittent participation. 

   

The ASPHN Advocacy Committee is requesting your assistance to be part of this relevant process.  Please complete the short survey this week.
Volunteer to Review a New Blueprint PowerPoint 
ASPHN is looking for volunteers to review a PowerPoint presentation developed to promote the 2nd edition of the Blueprint for Nutrition and Physical Activity: Cornerstones of a Healthy Lifestyle.  The PowerPoint was designed to be used by communities, consumers and organizations to increase the document's visibility and provide examples of how the strategies and actions described in the Blueprint can be put into action.  To volunteer please contact ASPHN Consultant Sandy Perkins.

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Read About ASPHN Members' Successes    
At ASPHN, we like to share our members' successes!  We like to spread the word about how important public health nutritionists are.  And we hope that fellow members' experiences can give you ideas for programs and projects that might work in your state.

ASPHN has produced two new success stories.  One highlights Diane Peck and her work to promote salad bars in Alaska's schools.  Diane brought together leaders in Alaska's Child Nutrition and Farm to School Programs as well as the state Parent Teacher Association.  Read about this team's great work, including producing a promotional video and a training video, sponsoring trainings for school food service staff, and much more.

Our second story profiles Lissa Sirois' work with the New Hampshire Breastfeeding Integration Group.  Read about how Lissa and the Breastfeeding Integration Group provided training and support to the state's Home Visiting Program staff to enable home visitors to provide breastfeeding education and support to new moms.  

 

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Get to Know the ASPHN Consultants  
In this second in our series introducing you to ASPHN consultants, we're  profiling Joan Atkinson, ASPHN's Director of Special Projects.  Joan joined the ASPHN team in 2003, when she launched the National Council of 5 A Day Coordinators, now called the National Council of State Fruit and Vegetable Nutrition Coordinators. 

In addition to her continued work with the Council over the last decade, Joan also supported the ASPHN Advocacy Committee and coordinated the annual Training Needs Assessment.  Joan takes on special projects for ASPHN as well, including coordinating the recent Southeast Summit. 

Joan currently is project manager for ASPHN's Healthy Places for Kids to Eat program.  Funded by CDC, this project brings together state health agencies, SNAP-Ed agencies, and other partners to create healthier environments in schools and early care and education settings.

What Joan likes most about working with ASPHN is the connection she makes with the Association's amazing and diverse members.  Joan loves to get to know the people she works with, to learn about what is happening in their states and in their lives!

When she's not hard at work, Joan likes to be out photographing coastal Maine.  In fact, she loves everything about the Maine coast.  She also likes to knit, walk, swim and contribute to her new community.

Take the Healthy Meeting Pledge  
The ASPHN Advocacy Committee would like you to take the healthy meeting pledge.  The National Alliance for Nutrition and Activity (NANA) has developed the Healthy Meeting Toolkit to help you and your organization promote healthy eating at meetings, conferences and events.  The toolkit contains helpful tips on how to serve healthier foods, work with hotels to contract for a healthy conference, talk to a caterer or chef about serving healthier options, integrate physical activity into meetings, and more.  ASPHN has already taken the pledge!

All organizations, institutions, government agencies, or businesses that pledge to have healthy meetings can be recognized on CSPI's healthy meeting webpage.  You can also use the healthy meeting logo on your website or in your meeting/conference agenda if you meet the NANA guidelines for nutrition and physical activity.

If you already have a healthy meeting policy, please take the healthy meeting pledge now to show your organization's support for providing a healthy work environment.  To take the healthy meeting pledge and for more information, email Katherine Bishop at CSPI.

ASPHN Expands Membership Categories 
At its April meeting, the ASPHN Board of Directors voted to open up our membership to public health nutritionists working in state departments of human services, education, agriculture and aging, in addition to state health departments.  With this decision, the Board is recognizing that many public health nutritionists work at the state level in agencies other than the health department.  These nutritionists now have the opportunity to join ASPHN and bring their expertise to the Association. 

This decision to expand our membership requires a change to our bylaws.  The ASPHN Bylaws Committee Chair Peggy Trouba and Executive Director Karen Probert will hold a conference call for all members to review the proposed bylaws changes.  The call will be Monday, June 16, 2014 at 11 am Eastern.

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Share Your News 
Would you like to share news about your important work with other ASPHN members?  If so, please submit a brief write-up to Lynda Alfred, ASPHN Consultant.  Please keep your story under 200 words, and be sure to include a photo or graphic!  Check with Lynda for deadlines.

About ASPHN
The Association of State Public Health Nutritionists  (ASPHN) is a non-profit membership organization that develops leaders in public health nutrition who strengthen policy, programs and

environments, making it possible for everyone to make healthy food choices and achieve healthy, active lifestyles.

 

Our vision is to create new environmental norms where healthy eating and active living are the easy and natural choices for all Americans.  We welcome your involvement in our growing organization.  Learn more about us at About ASPHN.