The Swetland Center is excited to announce our newest faculty affiliate, Dr. Brandy Phipps. Dr. Phipps received her Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences with a focus on Nutrition, Oncology, and Molecular Biology and Biotechnology from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), during which time she served on the University Council, as a delegate to the Graduate Student Assembly, and as both a Pre-Doctoral and Doctoral Ford Fellow through the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine. She received her Master of Science in Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise from Virginia Tech and a Bachelor of Science in Nutritional Sciences from the University of Florida.
Dr. Phipps is currently an Assistant Professor in the at Central State University with a research focus on holistic interactions of biomolecules in plant extracts and foods; mechanisms of biomolecules in the prevention/alleviation of disease; and evaluation of nutrition and wellness needs and development of strategies to mitigate chronic health conditions in underserved and historically disadvantaged populations. Dr. Phipps has 20+ years of higher education teaching experience in the Biological and Life Sciences, and currently teaches Anatomy and Physiology, Nutrition, and Undergraduate Research classes. She is particularly passionate about providing educational equity, advanced experiential STEM learning opportunities, and personalized mentoring to PEER [Persons Excluded because of Ethnicity or Race] students and those who have been socially and economically disadvantaged.
In addition to her teaching and research, Dr. Phipps is personally and professionally passionate about equity in health and education. As such, she brings with her a vast array of experience in community engagement related to food systems. She served as the inaugural Chairperson of the Clark County Local Foods Council (2017 – 2020) - a multi-institutional, collaborative entity founded to examine local food intake and barriers to local food access; advocate for policy changes to increase the production and availability of local foods; provide education about local foods; and assist in creating a local food network to benefit local food producers, retailers, and consumers in Clark County, Ohio. She has also served as an Executive Officer of the Board of Directors for Second Harvest Food Bank (SHFB) of Clark, Champaign, and Logan Counties since 2017. During her time on the board, SHFB has transitioned to local ownership (2020) and more than doubled its service during the COVID-19 pandemic and the loss of the only grocery store in a vulnerable area of the service area.
She recently served as a faculty advisor for a student LGBTQIA+ organization; facilitated LGBTQIA+ Ally Development workshops across the community; served as a panel member for the Ohio Diversity in Healthcare Summit, and as a grant reviewer for state and local agencies funding health programs. She currently serves as a mentor for Champion City Scholars, mentoring high school students who are on their way to becoming first-generation college students. Most recently, she served on the , which produced a strategic plan to allow our “membership to reflect the diversity of the global and US population and be an agent of change that increases the equitable inclusion across all career stages of persons belonging to groups that have been excluded from the sciences.”
The Swetland center is grateful for Dr. Phipp's interest in collaboration and sharing her expertise with our Swetland team and collaborators.
You can follow Dr. Phipps on Twitter @brandyphippsphd