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Stephanie Rogus, Ph.D., hopes to help Far West Texas residents eat healthier and reduce their risk of chronic diseases.
Rogus, an expert in nutrition research and education, will educate and provide insights on food security, food policy and nutrition. She will serve the region from the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in El Paso.
She has a 75 percent tenure with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, a 25 percent tenure with Texas A&M AgriLife Research and is an assistant professor in the Texas A&M Department of Nutrition.
“We are pleased, Dr. “Having Rogus on our team,” said Beth Racine, Dr.PH, Center Director, Associate Department Head and Professor of Nutrition. “Her expertise on food and nutrition issues will provide evidence-based programming to AgriLife Extension agents. And her leadership in research will help AgriLife Research become a national leader in applied nutrition research.”
Rogus’ collective responsibility
Rogus will support AgriLife Extension in developing, modifying and evaluating nutrition program curricula and materials. She will also work with district representatives and other staff to provide support and expertise on nutrition-related programs.
“I am excited to be at the Texas A&M AgriLife Center in El Paso,” said Rogus. “I hope my knowledge and experience will help Texans eat healthier and reduce their risk of chronic disease. I also hope that my research will contribute to impactful advances in nutritional science.”
In addition to her research and outreach responsibilities in the field of nutrition related to diet quality and consumer behavior, she will supervise graduate students.
“We are pleased that Dr. Rogus joins the AgriLife Extension team working in our Nutrition Division,” said Courtney Dodd, Ph.D., agency deputy director for Health, Family and Youth Programs. “She brings a wealth of knowledge and will be a great asset to our agency and an excellent resource for our district agents in Far West Texas. Dr. Rogus and these agents will work together to meet the nutrition, diet quality and consumer behavior needs of Texas residents.”
Rogus’ professional and academic experience in the field of nutrition
Rogus earned both her doctoral and master’s degrees in food science from New York University and her bachelor’s degree in nutrition from the University of Texas at Austin.
Prior to joining Texas A&M, she was campaign manager for scientific integrity at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, where she led advocacy campaigns to promote federal agency transparency and evidence-based public health policymaking.
Rogus also has teaching experience at the university level as an assistant professor of human nutrition and dietetics in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces.
She has received numerous grants, reviewed dozens of publications, published many research reports and abstracts, and authored a chapter on training registered dietitians in food systems for the book Practicing Food Studies.
Rogus has been active in a variety of professional services covering topics such as healthy eating, COVID-19, nutrition, obesity, food security, public health nutrition, and environmental nutrition.
