Welcome to CCS!

Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education ranks California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) first in California and 5th in the nation among colleges and universities awarding bachelor’s degrees to Hispanics. Consistent with its dedication to creating educational and career opportunities for its diverse students, CSUF, the only four-year Hispanic-Serving Institution in Orange County, in partnership with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and community organizations, has developed Comidas y Comunidades Saludables (CCS), a novel educational endeavour to diverse the nutrition workforce.

CCS addresses the growing childhood obesity epidemic as it pertains to the Hispanic immigrant population. Data from the Food and Agricultural Education Information System (FAEIS) database shows only 14.8% of those who have earned degrees related to childhood obesity and nutrition are Hispanic, in stark contrast to their proportions of the general population (FAEIS 2011). Development of the present curricula will 1) provide opportunities for predominantly Hispanic students to obtain quality training in a nutrition-related field, where-by promoting equity in education and the workforce; 2) train a diverse workforce that understands the multifaceted needs of this underserved community and can effectively reduce childhood obesity; and 3) help develop a multi-disciplinary food and nutrition-related curriculum that can be replicated and serve as a resource for other institutions and organizations.

Supported by a grant from the USDA, Hispanic Serving Institutions Education Program, # 2011-38422-30839.