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ACEND Board


The ACEND board is the governing unit of ACEND which grants final accreditation awards. As a decision-making body of a federally-recognized accrediting agency, the board must include at least one academic, educator, practitioner, administrator and public member. The ACEND board includes: A chair, a vice chair, a past chair, at least one representative for each program type (Dietetic Technician, Didactic, Coordinated, and Dietetic Internship), at least one practitioner representative for each credential offered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration (Dietetic Technician Registered and Registered Dietitian Nutritionist), at least one program administrator or representative of other stakeholders, one dietetics student, and one representative of the public. Information about qualifications and requirements for ACEND board positions can be found in the ACEND board positions can be found in the ACEND Policy & Procedure Handbook.

2025-2026 Board

Chair

Janet Stuhrcke, DCN, RD, FAND
Director, Graduate Program in Nutrition and Dietetics
Fairfield University
Fairfield, Conn.

Vice Chair

Kendra Kattelmann, PhD, RDN, LN, FAND
Distinguished Professor, Director, Health and Consumer Sciences Division
South Dakota State University
Brookings, S.D.

Past ACEND Chair

Nancy T. Prange, PhD, MPH, MS, RDN, LDN
Director, Dietetic Internship
Northern Illinois University
DeKalb, Ill.

Coordinated Program in Dietetics (CP) Representative

Dena French, EdD, RYT, RDN, LD
Director, Coordinated Program in Dietetics
Fontbonne University
St. Louis, Mo.

Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD) Representatives

Ellis Morrow, DCN, MS, RDN, LD, FAND
Director of Nutritional Sciences and Dietetics Post-Doctoral Interprofessional Education Research Fellowship
Texas Southern University
Houston, Texas

Deborah Hutcheon, DCN, RD, LD
Associate Clinical Professor, Graduate Program in Applied Nutrition
University of New England
Portland, Maine

Dietetic Internship (DI) Program Representatives

Kimberly Gottesman, DCN, RD, LD, CNSC
Assistant Professor, Director, Didactic Program in Dietetics, Department of Nutrition and Food Science
California State University Los Angeles
Los Angeles, Calif.

Claudia Sealey-Potts, PhD, RD, LD, FAND
Professor and Director, Doctorate in Clinical Nutrition
University of Texas Medical Branch
Galveston, Texas

Dietetic Technician (DT) Program Representative

Michelle Palumbo, NDTR
Dietetic Technician
Cleveland Clinic
Parma, Ohio

Dietetic Technician (DT) Program Representative-elect

David Clark, MS, RDN, LD
Chairperson and Program Director
Sinclair College
Dayton, Ohio

Program Representatives at-Large

Kelli Killingsworth, MPH, RDN, LND
Director, Faculty Instructor, Academic Programs
Universidad Ana G. Mendez-Gurabo Campus
Gurabo, P.R.

Le Greta Hudson MS, RDN, LD, CDCES, FAND
Adjunct Instructor, Department of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology
University of Missouri
Columbia, Mo.

Program Representative at Large-elect

Claudia Scott, MS, RD, LD, CDCES
Clinical Associate Professor and Director, Dietetic Internship
University of Houston
Houston, Texas

Practitioner Representative and Administrator Representative

Gloria Verdino, MS, RD, CDN
Renal Dietitian
Davita Kidney Care
Monticello, N.Y.

Practitioner Representative

Annjeanette Soltysiak, NDTR
Community Health Educator
BJC Healthcare-Corporate Health Services
St. Louis, Mo.

Public Members

Anthony Hill, PhD, LISW-CP, CFSW, ACSW
Chair, Graduate Director and Associate Professor, Department of Social Work
Winthrop University
Rock Hill, S.C.

Nicole Webb, DNP, APRN-BC, FNP-BC
Associate Dean, College of Health, Science and Technology
University of Central Missouri
Warrensburg, Mo.

Kerry McNiven, MS, RRT, FAARC
Independent Contractor
Kettering National Seminars
Dayton, Ohio

ACEND Student Representative

Kaitlyn Good
Dietetic Student
James Madison University
Harrisonburg, Va.

ACEND Student Representative-elect

Hannah Fox
Dietetic Student
Baylor University Medical Center
Dallas, Texas

Find an ACEND-Accredited Program

ACEND has more than 600 accredited programs across the United States and select countries internationally, with in-person and online options. Use the search filters to find the program that fits your needs.