facebook pixel
skip to main content

Ouachita Stories

news

Ouachita to host Zonya Foco, “America’s nutrition leader,” Nov. 16

November 05, 2015 - Emily Grigsby

ZFDr. Zonya Foco, a noted dietitian, television chef, author and speaker known as “America’s nutrition leader,” will speak at Ouachita Baptist University’s 2015 Nell Mondy Lecture Series. Dr. Foco’s lecture, hosted by the university’s J.D. Patterson School of Natural Sciences, will be held Monday, Nov. 16, at 7:30 p.m. in McBeth Recital Hall. The lecture is free and open to the public.

The lecture series was established at Ouachita in 1991 by Dr. Nell Mondy, an alumna of the university. Dr. Mondy was a professor of nutritional sciences, food science and toxicology at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. The series focuses on the fields of chemistry, food science and nutrition. Guest lecturers are outstanding scholars who have achieved national prominence in their fields.

“This lecture is to inform students and enrich their knowledge of food sciences,” said Stacy Freeman, associate professor of dietetics. “This lecture is relevant to our campus and our community as it focuses on the eating habits that we try to adapt to while away from home.”

Noting that Dr. Foco’s topic for the lecture is “Staying Healthy in a Culture that Is Anything But,” Freeman added, “I know it will be interesting for anyone to hear.”

Freeman said she is excited that Ouachita is hosting Dr. Foco, “a registered dietitian and a certified health instructor. And something that is different about her is that she is a certified public speaker.”

Focusing more on healthy eating that dieting, Dr. Foco is the author of Lickety-Split Meals for Health Conscious People on the Go! She also hosts Zonya’s Health Bites on PBS and CreateTV and has been published in such popular magazines as Prevention, Total Health and Fast and Healthy Cooking.

Dr. Foco, a graduate of Eastern Michigan University, has partnered with Health Alliance Plan of Michigan since 2004 to develop and present its award-winning Weight Wise member programs based on her eight core DIET FREE habits. She also has been a guest presenter for “Oprah & Bob’s Best Life Challenge.” Her presentations have been described as “equal parts entertainment and education, helping people laugh at their bad habits and discover the joy in adopting new, healthier habits.”

The lecture “isn’t just open to science majors,” Freeman added. She said it is a great opportunity for students from other majors as well as the community “to come see a certified public speaker and see how she works with the audience.”

For more information, contact Stacy Freeman at [email protected] at (870) 245-5542.

 

By Emily Grigsby

Top