Dr. Jamie Zoellner is an Associate Professor and Registered Dietitian in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of Virginia where she provides leadership for community-based health equity and obesity reduction initiatives.  She also serves as the Associate Director of UVA Cancer Center without Walls and is working to expand the Cancer Center’s community-based research program and outreach efforts in southwest and southside Virginia. Her research includes engaging medically underserved areas in community-based participatory research (CBPR) and discovering solutions to the causes and consequences of limited health literacy.  She focuses on lifestyle risk factors (i.e., diet and physical activity) that have direct relevance to obesity and cancer prevention efforts.  She is an active member of the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics and serves on the journal’s Board of Editors, the Research Committee, and STATS Committee.

Dr. Zoellner has successfully lead the development and evaluation of SIPsmartER, a health literacy and behavioral intervention that has proven effective at reducing sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among adults in rural Appalachia.  She is currently working in collaboration with four Virginia Department of Health Districts in Appalachia to test the adoption and implementation of the evidence-based SIPsmartER intervention into routine practice.  She also provides leadership for advancing childhood obesity reduction initiatives in the Dan River Region.  She has co-lead the development, implementation, and evaluation of an evidence- and family-based childhood obesity treatment program.  She is now leading a partnership with health and community organizations in the Dan River Region on a comparative effectiveness trial of two childhood obesity treatment programs. This research involves developing the capacity of health and community systems in the region to adopt and sustain evidence-based programs.