Graduate Training Program in Food Safety Engineering

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: The TESA targeted by this project is Food Science. The changes in the food industry triggered by the implementation of non-traditional methods for food pathogen inactivation, the need for better and faster pathogen detection methods, gave rise to a need for highly trained scientists in the emerging area of Food Safety Engineering. Such specialists are at the moment lacking, but are absolutely necessary for the permanently changing, modern food industry. We propose a multidisciplinary program that will train 3 Ph.D. and 1 M.S. Fellows with comprehensive knowledge and skills in Food Safety Engineering. The program includes: (i) multidisciplinary training that bridges the disciplines of food science, microbiology and food & biological engineering, (ii) internship opportunities related to Food Safety Engineering in national and state agencies, as well the food industry, and (iii) focus on recruiting students from underrepresented minorities and first generation college students. Upon graduation, the Fellows will be able to undertake leadership roles in the emerging field of Food Safety Engineering.

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APPROACH: To achieve the goals of the proposed program, we have assembled a diverse group of faculty mentors with strong expertise and active research programs in food science, food & biological engineering, and microbiology. The key steps of program are: <ol>
<li> Recruitment. The goal is to recruit outstanding Fellows, including at least 2 minority students. Specific strategies: (a) personal contact by faculty members, particularly targeted at schools with history of minority enrollment; b) contact sessions at scientific and professional meetings; (c) mailings to U.S. food science and microbiology departments; (d) mailings to alumni; (e) Departmental Web pages; (f) national advertising in appropriate publications; (g) recruitment within the Cornell Food Science Summer Research Program; (h) targeted minority recruitment by reaching out to minority student organizations and associations. <li> Training Program. The Fellows will matriculate in one of 3 graduate fields (Food Science, Microbiology, or Biological Engineering) and will select minor fields in complementary areas. They will also select a committee chair from the Faculty participating in the program. The Fellows are expected to acquire the following core competencies: (i) Technical skills (theoretical knowledge and selected practical skills in advanced food microbiology, advanced processing and engineering methods relevant to food safety, food safety, risk assessment & management, regulatory aspects of food safety); (ii) Information assessment skills (information gathering, statistical methods relevant to food safety applications); (iii) Success & management skills (oral & written communication, critical thinking, problem solving, leadership, ethics, integrity, respect for diversity, etc. </ol> These competencies will be achieved through: (a) a core curriculum to provide fundamental knowledge, supplemented with appropriate electives; (b) a multidisciplinary thesis research project; (c) journal clubs and graduate seminars; (d) close interactions with advisors interdisciplinary contacts; (e) regular participation in professional meetings; (f) opportunities for internships; (g) a comprehensive mentoring and advising program. Clear monitoring and management strategies have been identified in order to ensure proper student progress and retention.
<p>Pipelining the Fellows into future professional opportunities that meet the targeted TESA. Proposed strategy:
(a) establish a mentorship system consisting of the project PIs and collaborators, and senior graduate students, who will introduce the fellows to professionals in the field; (b) facilitate the participation of the fellows in internships in industry, research centers, regulatory agencies; (c) facilitate fellow participation at relevant national meetings and seminars; d) meetings with members of the Advisory Council of the Cornell Institute of Food Science; (e) encourage the minority fellows to join minority associations for additional assistance in identifying future professional opportunities; (f) facilitate meetings with the College Career Office for qualified resume building and job search assistance. <p>
PROGRESS: 2006/11 TO 2007/11<BR>
The MS and PhD training program in Food Safety Engineering addresses the National Targeted Expertise Shortage Area (TESA) 5 (Food Science) and focuses on training graduate students with knowledge and skills at the interface between food & biological engineering and food microbiology & safety. The need for this program was triggered by recent changes in the food processing industry, which is currently adopting non-traditional processing methods for microbial inactivation. This created new employment opportunities for specialists able to apply sound engineering principles to design efficient microbial inactivation treatments or detection methods. The current program is designed to provide 4 fellows (3PhD and 1MS) with multidisciplinary training opportunities offered by faculty with expertise in the fields of food science, food and biological engineering, microbiology, and veterinary medicine. The program also includes career building opportunities through internships in industry, government or regulatory agencies, participation at technical meetings, networking with prominent members of the food industry, participation in career fairs, career advise and job search support from professional career officers. So far, the recruitment into the program is on schedule, following the timeline included in the proposal. A PhD student was already enrolled in the program in its first year, and 1 MS fellow has been recruited and has confirmed that he will join the program in January 2008. PRODUCTS: By the end of the program, 3PhD fellows and 1MS fellow will be trained in the interdisciplinary area of food safety engineering. OUTCOMES: The current PhD fellow, Lillian Hsu (MS, University of Pennsylvania), has made excellent progress in her course work, achieving a GPA of 3.9/4.0 after taking a total of 9 letter grade credit hours. Her course work is following closely the curriculum for the NNF fellows included in the funded USDA proposal. Her PhD Chair has been already selected and the rest of the Committee is currently being finalized. In order to foster a close collaboration with external agencies, one of the external members of the Committee is a Lead Scientist from the USDA - ARS Food Safety Intervention Technologies Research Center in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania. <BR> DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: The objectives and progress of the project were publicly communicated as a poster and an oral presentation that gave an overview of the National Needs Graduate Fellowship Programs in Food Science at Cornell University, which were both presented at the Food and Agricultural Sciences National Needs Graduate Fellowship Grants Program Project Directors and Beneficiaries Meeting held in Washington, DC. An advertising and recruiting brochure for the project, as well as an online posting were also created.<BR> FUTURE INITIATIVES: Active efforts are made to ensure successful recruitment for the remaining 2 PhD positions. These efforts consist in online advertising, mailings and email communication with various relevant undergraduate and graduate programs in the country, a special attention being given to those institutions with a large number of students from underrepresented minorities.
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IMPACT: 2006/11 TO 2007/11<BR>
This NNF program is expected to make considerable contributions to overall improvements in food safety and food science graduate training. Along with similar initiatives, this program is meant to foster improved interdisciplinary training in food safety and food science.