Our Team
We have a strong team which has been working on planning and implementing SNAP since 2006. The project team includes:
Jennifer Taylor, PhD, (Co-Principal Investigator) is a professor in the Department of Family and Nutrition Sciences at University of Prince Edward Island. Dr. Taylor is a Registered Dietitian; she has been studying children’s eating habits since 1999. Her main area of interest is the role of school nutrition policies on children’s eating habits and weight status and the perceptions of key stakeholders involved in implementing these policies. A second area area of interest is nutrition in early childhood (development and implementation of an early learning healthy eating program for kindergarten children).
Paul J. Veugelers, PhD, (Co-Principal Investigator) is a professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the School of Public Health at the University of Alberta. Dr. Veugelers was the first to demontrate that comprehensive school health programs can improve eating habits and reduce overweight in children in the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia. He continues to study the importance of nutrition, healthy lifestyles, and other factors that relate to overweight in children in both Nova Scotia and Alberta.
Debbie MacLellan, PhD, is a professor in the Department of Family and Nutrition Sciences at University of Prince Edward Island. Dr. MacLellan is a Registered Dietitian (Past-Chair for the Dietitians of Canada); she leads a research program that works to understand factors influencing nutrition knowledge and eating behaviours in adolescents and adults. She also conducts research in the area of professional standards and dietetic education. Dr. MacLellan is overseeing the collection of qualitative data from students and parents.
Mary McKenna, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of New Brunswick (UNB). Dr. McKenna is a Registered Dietitian; her research focuses on promoting healthy eating in schools. Her most recent research traced the policy process associated with a provincial nutrition policy for schools and analyzed factors that influenced its implementation. Dr. McKenna is working with Dr. Debbie MacLellan in studying the perceptions of students, parents and school staff regarding the school nutrition policies.
Bob Gray, formerly of the Eastern School District, is school liaison. He worked with Dr. Taylor in the first study of PEI school children’s eating habits in 1999, and has been active in school health research since then. He has served as principal and District Principal in the Eastern School District, and currently teaches part-time in the UPEI Faculty of Education.
Kimberley Hernandez, MBA, is the Project Manager. She is also a Registered Dietitian. Ms. Hernandez worked with Dr Taylor in the first study of PEI school children’s eating habits in 1999 and has held a keen interest in children's nutrition since then. She has been part of the SNAP team since 2008 and has experience in both management and supervision which are an asset to the team. Ms. Hernandez has also taught in the Department of Family and Nutritional Sciences at the University of Prince Edward Island.
