Dr. Tammy J. StephensonDr. Tammy Stephenson, faculty member in the Nutrition and Food Science (NFS) Department, has been promoted to Senior Lecturer. She is currently the director of Undergraduate Studies for the Department of NFS.  Stephenson had this to say when asked about her job, "I appreciate the opportunity to work at the University of Kentucky and to support the land grant mission of this great university."

Stephenson has a bachelor's in Human Nutrition and a PhD in Nutritional Sciences, both from UK. She has served as a faculty member for the last ten years.   Stephenson loves being in the classroom and for her career that will always be a priority. She has accomplished a lot in a ten year time frame and has become known for her new and innovative teaching techniques.

Stephenson is constantly looking for new ways to get information to students in an effective manner. Her teaching methods are aimed at the various ways students learn, so she incorporates a variety of assessment tools in the classroom. Her goal is for students to truly learn a topic, not just memorize facts for a test.  

She encourages other faculty members and professionals to think outside the box and to develop assignments/projects that will engage students by including real-life examples/applications.  While many of her ideas have worked, there have been many that have not, and her advice for such a blockade is "You never know until you try it!"

She says that the best part of her job is being able to see her students achieve their goals in life. She went on to say, "I feel a great sense of pride and accomplishment in all that they do. I have achieved success when my students achieve success. I am here to support and guide them." 

Stephenson not only spends time in the classroom with students, but she also serves as a faculty advisor for several organizations, including the Student Dietetic Association (SDA).  She is secretary of the American Dietetic Association Nutrition Educators of Health Professionals Practice Group, president of the  Lexington-Area Alumnae Chapter of Tri-Delta Sorority, coach of  the under-6 and under-8 teams at the local YMCA, regular volunteer at her daughters' school , and she has recently began co-authoring a textbook that will publish in January 2013. 

The School of Human Environmental Sciences is delighted to have such a proactive and innovative faculty member.  We look forward to future work from Dr. Stephenson.