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Agricultural and Human Sciences

Carolyn Dunn PhD, RDN, LDN

CD

William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor

Bio

Dr. Dunn is a William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor Emerita and entered into phased (part-time) retirement in 2021. She served as department head for Agricultural and Human Sciences from 2013-2021. She provides program expertise and state-wide leadership for nutrition and wellness for families and communities. She has 30+ years of experience in nutrition education and develops nutrition education materials that are used across the country to help people eat smart and move more. Carolyn is the author/developer for numerous programs and tools that address healthy eating and physical activity. She is the lead author of the award-winning Color Me Healthy, a curriculum that helps young children eat smart and move more. She and colleagues created Eat Smart, Move More, Weigh Less, a 15-week evidence-based weight management program that is being used across the country in both in-person and online formats. She and colleagues also created Eat Smart, Move More, Prevent Diabetes that is being delivered across North Carolina and in several other states using distance technology. Dunn and her team currently have a $5M grant from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina to deliver diabetes prevention education across the state.

Dr. Dunn and colleagues have published their work in Obesity, American Journal of Health Promotion, Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior and others. She is the past chair of Eat Smart, Move More North Carolina, a 90-agency coalition that promotes increased opportunities for healthy eating and physical activity wherever people live, learn, earn, play and pray. She is a member of Sigma Xi the scientific research society and the Academy for Outstanding Faculty Engaged in Extension.

Programs and Initiatives

Contributing Websites

Professional Honors/Offices/Recognitions

  • 2019 – William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor, NC State University
  • 2018 – Excellence in Teamwork Award for the Extension Master Food Volunteer Program, North Carolina Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences
  • 2018 – Outstanding Subject Matter Program by a Team Award, Extension Master Food Volunteer Program, North Carolina Association of Cooperative Extension Specialists

Selected Publications

  • Collins, C., McCallum, E., Nordby, K., Aggarwal, S., Griffith, E., Thomas, C., & Dunn, C. (2023). Enrollment, engagement, and effectiveness of a large-scale diabetes prevention program using synchronous distance technology. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202310.0720.v1
  • Dunn C, Dada S, Whetstone LM, Thomas C, Aggarwal S, Nordby K, Thompson S, Meyer S. (2018). Mindful eating and weight loss, results from a randomized trial. Journal of Family Medicine and Community Health, 5(3):1152-1159: https://www.jscimedcentral.com/FamilyMedicine/familymedicine-5-1152.pdf. 
  • Dunn C, Haubenreiser M, Johnson M, Nordby K, Aggarwal S, Myer S, Thomas C. (2018). Mindfulness approaches ad weight loss, weight maintenance, and weigh regain. Current Obesity Reports, 7(1):37-49:doi https://doi.org/10.1007/s13679-018-02996.
  • Dailey, R., Romo, L., Myer, S., Thomas, C., Aggarwal, S., Nordby, K., … Dunn, C. (2018). The Buddy Benefit: Increasing the Effectiveness of an Employee-Targeted Weight-Loss Program. Journal of Health Communication, 23(3), 272–280. https://doi.org/10.1080/10810730.2018.1436622
  • Wass, J., Hofing, G., Goolsby, L., Haynes-Maslow, L., & Dunn, C. (2017). Color Me Healthy for SNAP-Ed Supplemental Toolkit: A Comprehensive Approach to the Social-Ecological Model. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 49(7), S53. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JNEB.2017.05.263
  • Jones, L., Dunn, C., Foley, E., Burghardt, M., Rhew, L., van Rijn, S., … Vodika, S. (2017). EFNEP’s Families Eating Smart and Moving More: Integration of Video, Social Media, and PSE in EFNEP Delivery. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 49(7), S54–S55. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JNEB.2017.05.267
  • Thompson S, Dunn C, Aggarwal S, Tchwenko Sm Wang A, Rushing J, Thomas C, Nordby K, Allision C. (2016). Behaviors predictive of weight loss maintenance: Six-month follow up on an online weight management program. Obesity: Open Access, 2(3):doi http://dx.doi.org/10.16966/2380-5528.124. 
  • Dunn C, Dada S, Whetstone LM, Thomas C, Aggarwal S, Nordby K, Thompson S, Meyer S. (2016). Synchronous distance delivery of weight management program, a randomized control trial. Obesity, 24:44-50:doidoi: 10.1002/oby.21315. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26637964/
  • Johnson M, Dunn C, Thomas C, Aggarwal S, Nordby K, Thompson S, Myer S. (2015). Offering a free online program to maintain weight over the holiday season. J of Extension, 53(5):#5TOT3. https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3589&context=joe
  • Dunn C,  Whetstone LM, Kolasa KM, Jayaratne KSU, Thomas C, Aggarwal S, Nordby K, Herget C, Rogers AB. (2014). Using synchronous distance education technology to deliver a weight management intervention. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 46(6):602-609:doi https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jneb.2014.06.001
  • Kretser, A., Dunn, C., DeVirgiliis, R., & Levine, K. (2014). Utility of a New Food Value Analysis Application to Evaluate Trade-offs When Making Food Selections. Nutrition Today, 49(4), 185–195. https://doi.org/10.1097/NT.0000000000000040

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Education

MS Nutrition Meredith College

MS Nutrition University of North Carolina at Greensboro

PhD Nutrition University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Certified Culinary Medicine Specialist (CCMS) Tulane University School of Medicine

Registered and Licensed Dietician

Area(s) of Expertise

  • Overweight and Obesity Prevention
  • Nutrition for Children
  • Physical Activity
  • Chronic Disease Risk Reduction
  • Policy and Environmental Change

Groups