About
Cristen L. Harris
Teaching Professor, Epidemiology
PhD, Florida International University
MS, University of Miami
RDN, Commission on Dietetic Registration
FAND, Fellow of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Raitt Hall 305K
Box 353410
Seattle, WA 98195-3410
Phone: 206-685-0676
Cristen Harris joined the core faculty of the Food Systems, Nutrition, and Health Program (formerly the Nutritional Sciences Program) and Department of Epidemiology in 2019, and has three decades of experience as a clinician, educator, program director, and researcher. She teaches courses in Nutrition for Today, Nutrition Education, Physical Activity in Health and Disease, Maternal and Pediatric Nutrition, and Special Topics in Body Weight & Size Inclusivity. Prior to joining the University of Washington, Harris was the Director of the Didactic Program in Dietetics at Bastyr University.
Harris is fascinated by the challenges to developing both a positive attitude about food and positive embodiment including adverse childhood experiences, everyday experiences of discrimination, food insecurity, poor feeding dynamics, weight stigma, and disordered eating and exercise behaviors. She is specifically interested in the size-inclusive Satter Eating Competence model and the Division of Responsibility in feeding and activity as parts of the puzzle in helping people experience joy throughout the lifecycle in eating, feeding, and moving their bodies. Harris enjoys collaborations with colleagues from UW and across the U.S., the leadership team at the Ellyn Satter Institute, and local public health officials to explore these intersecting topics.
Harris is a member of several professional organizations including the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals, Diversify Dietetics, Sports and Human Performance Nutrition, Cardiovascular Health and Well-Being, and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. In 2014, Harris was honored as a Fellow of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in recognition of her professional achievements, valuable service to the profession and the public, and pursuit of lifelong learning.
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