Have a Question? (866) 295-3104
Nutrition and Wellness Graduate Program Faculty
The Benedictine University Master of Science in Nutrition and Wellness faculty is comprised of accomplished researchers who contribute to the field's literature and scholarship. They are active in professional organizations and bring real-world work experience to the classroom. The advisory board for the program includes members of the American Dietetic Association.
Catherine Arnold, Ed.D., MS, RD, LDN, professor of nutrition, is the department chairperson and Didactic Program in Dietetics Director. She teaches courses in nutrition research, case studies and applied data analyses. She earned her doctorate in Educational Psychology from Northern Illinois University and completed a Graduate Certificate in Advanced Quantitative Methods in Education. She earned an Advanced Specialty Training Certificate in Adult Weight Management. Arnold completed graduate coursework in exercise physiology at Benedictine University, and a Master of Science degree in Clinical Nutrition at Rush University in Chicago. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Clinical Nutrition from Benedictine University.
Arnold has worked as a medical dietitian, community educator, and consultant dietitian. She has received numerous awards, including a regional award as Outstanding Dietetics Educator from the American Dietetic Association (1996). She regularly presents her work at state, regional, national and international conferences. Arnold has published peer-reviewed research publications and a cookbook, and served as a section author for two editions of the Diet Manual, published by the American Dietetic Association. She has been active in the Illinois Dietetic Association, and she served as an appointed member of the national Nutrition Counseling Evidence Based Practice Task Force of the American Dietetic Association. Arnold's research interests include determining predictors of health behavior change, educational assessment and nutrition education outcomes research.
Deepa Handu, Ph.D., RD, LDN, assistant professor of nutrition, is the MSNW Program Director. She earned a doctorate degree in Human Nutrition (Michigan State University, 2005) and a master's degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition (Maharaja Sayajirao University, India, 1997). She previously taught nutrition and research courses at Loyola University Chicago.
Handu has been involved in school-based intervention programs to reduce the prevalence of obesity and to encourage students to take up a healthy lifestyle. In Michigan, she conducted the first statewide multi-clinic study to assess the prevalence of youth Type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Handu has delivered presentations at national professional conferences and co-authored numerous research studies. In fall 2006, she was awarded a $10,000 grant by the Consortium to Lower Obesity in Chicago Children (CLOCC) to study the impact of nutrition education on obesity prevalence in three Chicago public schools. Handu's research interests lie in the areas of public health nutrition, youth overweight prevalence and obesity risk, and diabetes.
Julie Moreschi, MS, RD, LDN, instructor of nutrition, is the Dietetic Internship Director. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Home Economics from Bradley University in 1983, her Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition from Rush University in 1985, and is pursuing her doctoral degree in Public Health at the University of Illinois, Chicago. She has been teaching in the nutrition department since 1994.
Moreschi has worked as a clinical dietitian, cafeteria manager, diet office manager, assistant foodservice director, internal management consultant, and consultant at a variety of health care organizations in Illinois and Minnesota. She has co-authored research presented at the annual American Dietetic Association Food, Nutrition Conference and Exhibition (FNCE), and she has been awarded grants for both professional development and community health education. She has also facilitated the creation of a clinical nutrition self-directed work team at a Chicago-area hospital, and served as a past Chair of the Strategic Planning Committee and CPI Chair of the Illinois Dietetic Association. Moreschi's professional interests lie primarily in the areas of community nutrition, maternal and child wellness, and preventative nutrition interventions.
Learn more about how the accomplished and distinguished faculty of the online MS in Nutrition and Wellness degree at Benedictine can help you reach your professional goals. Call us today at (866) 295-3104 to speak to an Admissions Advisor or request more information.
