Celebrating California leaders making a positive difference in communities through nutrition.
The Let's Eat Healthy Leadership Award celebrates initiative champions who advocate and take action to empower children, families and communities to develop lifelong healthy eating patterns. Now in its sixth year, the award program recognizes champion leaders and organizations from diverse sectors and backgrounds that advance strategies to further evidence-based nutrition education, dairy-inclusive agricultural literacy and equitable access to nutritious foods that include milk and dairy. Their actions make a positive difference in the health of communities across California.
Learn the stories of this years' recipients & the positive impact they have made in their community.
Watch hereWe are pleased to announce the Let's Eat Healthy Leadership and Legacy Award recipients.
KORI DOVERKori Dover is a dedicated advocate for nutrition education. She collaborates with Dairy Council of California to provide training for dietetic interns, school nutrition professionals and chefs. Dover has played a key role in integrating dairy-inclusive agricultural literacy into professional education and co-creating events like the Grateful Grazing, a Journey Through CA Harvest. Her work promotes balanced nutrition, highlighting the role of both beef and dairy in sustainable food systems. Through her leadership, she continues to strengthen partnerships and advance nutrition education across various sectors.
Being able to ask farmers and ranchers questions directly breaks down barriers, and helps people understand where their food comes from. I love to sit back and watch those 'lightbulb moments' when people are engaging with farmers and ranchers to talk about where their food comes from.
MAGGIE YU-DIPASQUALEMaggie Yu-DiPasquale is a champion for nutrition education. She partnered with Dairy Council of California to co-create a 12-episode nutrition series aired on KLCS-PBS, bridging the gap between schools and families by providing fun and interactive, science-based learning resources. Yu-DiPasquale is collaborating with Dairy Council of California to develop nutrition series episodes for middle school that will highlight dairy’s role in healthy eating patterns. Her efforts have reached hundreds of thousands of students, parents and educators, reinforcing the importance of nutrition through accessible multimedia learning tools.
Wellness encompasses a healthy body, a sound mind and a tranquil spirit. Enjoy the journey as you strive for wellness.
RAQUEL SANTILLAN MALDONADORaquel Santillan Maldonado, leads the Kids Eat Right program, an initiative of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation to bring hands-on nutrition education to elementary students. She has implemented Let’s Eat Healthy nutrition education resources to support a five-week curriculum featuring interactive cooking lessons and bilingual activity trackers, helping families reinforce healthy eating habits at home. Santillan Maldonado’s initiatives also emphasize sustainability by integrating food waste reduction into classroom activities. Through her leadership, the program has expanded to 25 schools across Monterey County, providing culturally inclusive, evidence-based nutrition education to thousands of children and families.
Empowering lifelong healthy eating habits is important to me because I feel that food and culture are such a big part of togetherness as a family and in our community. We really aim to provide families with healthy alternatives to making recipes that they might traditionally eat at home.
SMRITI MEHTASmriti Mehta, a high school student and nutrition education advocate, is the creator of a blog that simplifies nutrition science for teens. Inspired by her father’s diagnosis with type 2 diabetes, she also authored a children’s book, which she has shared with hundreds of students. Mehta has expanded her outreach globally, speaking to students about incorporating cultural foods into a balanced diet in India. She is currently working with university professors on launching a podcast to debunk nutrition myths and incorporate Dairy Council of California resources to ensure accuracy in her educational initiatives.
I’m passionate about making healthy eating simple for everyone, even as I continue to learn along the way.
STEVEN D. MILLERIn recognition of his unwavering dedication of 22 years to agricultural literacy and education, Steven Miller who passed away in January, is being honored for his commitment to the Dairy Council of California cause. His passion for empowering future generations has left a lasting impact, inspiring innovation and collaboration in the field. His legacy through the many students he reached, will shape dairy agricultural literacy and its role in sustainable food systems for years to come.
Tune into the complete Let's Eat Healthy Leadership Award playlist on our YouTube channel at DairyCouncilofCA.
Show your commitment for ensuring children and communities are supported to grow healthfully.
