Ashton Potter

Professional Profile

Ashton is a Lexington native and holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Rhodes College, a Master of Public Health degree from Georgia State University, and a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) from the University of Kentucky. Prior to coming to UK, she worked at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Enteric Diseases and in the Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity where she managed former First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! Childcare initiative. Ashton also worked for eight years under two Lexington mayoral administrations as the first Director of Local Food and Agricultural Development. During her time at the City Lexington she worked to connect farmers and local food producers with new market opportunities and launched the Bluegrass Double Dollars program --Lexington's first nutrition incentive program and the precursor to the statewide Kentucky Double Dollars Program. Ashton has served as the Executive Director of The Food Connection -- an applied food systems center in the Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment--since April 2022. Ashton also serves as the state Extension Specialist for Local Food Systems and her outreach and research interests focus on local and regional food systems development, specifically on value chain coordination and building market share for small to mid-scale farmers.