Drexel College of Nursing and Health Professions Announces Dr. Stella Volpe as the New Chair of Department of Nutrition Sciences

Drexel University College of Nursing and Health Professions announces that Dr. Stella L. Volpe, PHD, RD, LD/N, FACSM is serving as Professor and Chair of its Department of Nutrition Sciences.

As a nutritionist and exercise physiologist, Dr. Volpe has traveled around the world to share her research on changing daily habits to lower a person’s risk of obesity and diabetes. She has led efforts to reduce portion sizes in school cafeterias, maximize the physical activity in a person’s daily routine, and improve athletic performance through nutrition. Dr. Volpe was recently selected to advise the White House as a member of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness, Sports and Nutrition Science Board.

“At Drexel University, I’d like for the members of the Nutrition Sciences Department to serve as advocates for healthy living on campus, and we’re going to organize wellness programs for students and faculty through our new Center for Integrated Nutrition and Performance,” Dr. Volpe said. “The department is also looking to increase the amount of research on chronic disease prevention, and we opened a new lab recently that will provide space for researchers in many health disciplines to study areas such as bone density and metabolism.”

Prior to joining Drexel University, Dr. Volpe served on the faculty at the University of Massachusetts from 1994 through 2003 and at the University of Pennsylvania from 2004 to 2010.  She is also a faculty member of the Physiology of the Body Compartment Fellowship Program in the Department of Neuroscience, Human Nutrition and Food at the Universita Degli Studi “Tor Vergata” in Roma, Italia.  Her extensive publishing record includes articles in The International Journal of Obesity, Pediatric Exercise Science, The Journal of the American College of Nutrition, the Journal of the American Dietetic Association and Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism.

Dr. Volpe received a Bachelor’s degree in exercise science and biology/physiology from the University of Pittsburgh and completed her Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in human nutrition and foods and exercise physiology at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

The Drexel University College of Nursing and Health Professions enrolls approximately 3,200 students.  It offers associate, bachelors, masters and doctoral programs designed to build knowledge, improve practice and culturally competent care, foster professional integrity, and ultimately improve the health outcomes of patients, families and communities across the continuum of care.  The college has 150 full-time faculty and affiliations with some of the finest health care institutions in the U.S., all accredited by their respective accrediting bodies.  For more information on Drexel University or programs in Drexel’s College of Nursing and Health Professions, visit http://drexel.edu/cnhp/.