Dr. Casavale (Kellie) completed the Didactic Program in Dietetics, Dietetic Internship and Doctor of Philosophy degree in Nutrition in 2005 and is credentialed as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist. She was recognized as Outstanding Graduate Student of the Year in 2004 by the UNCG School of Human Environmental Sciences.
She currently serves as a Senior Nutrition Advisor in the Office of Nutrition and Food Labeling at the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) where she provides consultation and support to the directors and the office’s three technical groups and divisions. In performing her role with FDA and mentoring our graduate students, Kellie demonstrates extraordinary dedication to the development of nutrition policies and guidelines for Americans as well as future nutrition scientists.
During her 3 years working with FDA, Kellie has supported CFSAN in its representation of scientific perspectives, policies, and programs in the development and implementation of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) across FDA programs. She represented the United States with the US Delegation of the Codex Alimentarius Committee on Foods and Nutrition for Special Dietary Uses (CCFNSDU) at the annual world conference to support international standards for infant formula and other foods for special dietary uses.
Recently, she served as the Health and Human Services (HHS) liaison for food pattern modeling to develop the first Healthy US-Style Eating Patterns for children under age 2 years for the DGA 2020-2025. Prior to working with FDA, Kellie served as Nutrition Advisor in the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion in the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health. During this time, she served as lead policy writer and led development of the 2015-2020 DGA earning the Abraham Lincoln Honor Award for Exemplary Work from USDA Secretary Vilsack as well as a Certificate of Appreciation in Recognition of Exemplary Leadership and Teamwork from Assistant Secretary for Health, Karen DeSalvo.
Kellie further served as HHS spokesperson for the 2015-2020 DGA and supported Secretary Sebelius during the Obama Administration in preparing for congressional hearings. While Kellie’s accomplishments are far too numerous to name, notable overarching achievements include leading the Human Milk Composition Initiative in the US and Canada and founding the Federal Data Consortium on Pregnancy and Birth to 24 months.
She received an HHS Service Award for her work on two special projects within the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and served as HHS lead for a systematic review project resulting in an 18-paper supplement in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2019. In 2018, Kellie contacted our department with an amazing offer to host our graduate students as FDA dietetic interns.
Over the past three years, 5 graduate students from the Dietetic Internship Program have had the privilege of working under Kellie’s mentorship.
I’ve really found supporting new nutritional professionals an important part of me giving back to what UNCG provided me as a foundation for success- built on flexibility and confidence in young scientists as individuals rather than mass products of a university brand. It was that flexibility that led me to choose UNCG over other offers – and that allowed me the space to excel and understand my potential.
Dana DeSilva, PhD, RD who interned under Kellie’s mentorship in 2018-19 while completing her doctoral degree and the Dietetic Internship Program states, “Kellie is an excellent mentor who always provides clear guidance and constructive feedback. Although my time with her as a dietetic intern was in 2019, she continues to provide advice and support for my professional endeavors. The experience and connections I gained from working with her opened the door to rare opportunities, and ultimately prepared me to land my dream job, working on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Kellie has helped to cultivate a relationship between Federal nutrition agencies and UNC Greensboro’s Nutrition Department that will remain for many years to come.”