At the University of Minnesota, receiving a Regents Professorship is the ultimate honor for a faculty member. The University founded the professorship in 1965 and, at any given time, there can only be 30 serving Regents Professors. In June 2023, the University of Minnesota Board of Regents bestowed the title on Professor Dianne Neumark-Sztainer.
Neumark-Sztainer joined the School of Public Health (SPH) as an assistant professor in 1995 after completing a PhD at Hebrew University-Hadassah in Israel and a postdoctoral fellowship in the UMN Medical School. She is a world-renowned expert on eating, activity, and weight-related health in young people and before her Regents Professorship, the University honored her with several awards, including the Distinguished Women Scholars award and the Outstanding Faculty Award for Excellence in Postdoctoral Advising. In 2017, she was selected for membership in the academy for Excellence in Health Research and in 2020, was named a McKnight Presidential Professor. A pioneer in the field of adolescent eating patterns, Neumark-Sztainer led the SPH Division of Epidemiology and Community Health (EpiCH) from 2014-2023.
“We are immensely proud of Dianne,” says SPH Interim Dean Tim Beebe. “Her research increases the opportunities for lifelong health among young people, especially those from marginalized backgrounds, and she is an exceptional mentor and teacher. This honor recognizes her dedication to her students, her commitment to and support of the University, and the global influence of her research. Dianne is a shining example of a servant-scholar and we are so very lucky that she is part of our school.”
Neumark-Sztainer’s early research showed the interconnectedness of obesity and eating disorders and led to better, more effective interventions. In 1997, she founded Project EAT, which remains the world’s largest and most comprehensive study of eating, activity and weight-related health in young people. Findings from Project EAT have supported programs and policies in the U.S. and around the world to encourage healthy weight and activities for adolescents, young adults, and families. It also expanded current thinking about eating disorders, showing that they affect girls and boys and young people from all socio-demographic backgrounds. Recently, Project EAT examined young adult health during the COVID pandemic, food insecurity, and the impact of racism on weight-related health.
Neumark-Sztainer is a sought after expert. She has advised the World Health Organization on obesity and risk factors for adolescents, served on boards for various professional organizations, and is a featured speaker at national and international conferences.
As well as being a leader in her field and a top-funded researcher, Neumark-Sztainer is an outstanding teacher and mentor and was awarded SPH’s Leonard M. Schuman Award for Excellence in Teaching. Her mentees are involved with her research and she guides them in developing their own research trajectory, helping to launch the careers of many students. She is deeply committed to equity, diversity, inclusion, and justice and, as head of EpiCH, made sure that they were the basis for decision making, allocation of resources, and all division practices and policies.
