Biography
Dr. Gray is an associate professor and the interim lead in Nutrition and Dietetics MPH concentration. She is a registered dietitian in training (Credential ID No. 959398) and received her PhD in Behavioral Nutrition from Columbia University.
Dr.
Gray’s research focuses on developing and evaluating obesity prevention and
nutrition education intervention programs, especially for children and
adolescents. Since she joined USF in 2017, she has conducted several studies as
a principal investigator (PI) including a preliminary study to assess dietary
intakes, mealtime behaviors, and parental views on eating behaviors of children
with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and a community food assessment project to
examine food access and environment in low-income neighborhoods in East Tampa. Her
current research projects include nutrition education interventions for children
with ASD, Hispanic children with obesity and their parents, and pediatric
cancer survivors.
Dr. Gray is the PI of a R21 grant (R21HD106182) funded by
NIH/NICHD that aims to refine and test the feasibility and preliminary efficacy
of a nutrition intervention for children with ASD and their parents through the
Early Intervention Services. She serves as a Co-I for a multi-site NIH/NCI R01
nutrition intervention clinical trial (PI: Stern, R01CA240319) overseeing the
study’s dietary intake data collection and management, and also serves as a
Co-I for a NIH/NICCIH R34 pilot mindful eating intervention clinical trial (PI:
Stern, R34AT010661) and a supplementary project (MPI: Redwine & Stern, R34AT010661-01S1) to assess
COVID-19 testing and vaccine uptake attitudes and behaviors among rural Latino
migrants in Southwest Florida.
She is actively involved in local, national, and
international nutrition professional societies. She serves as the Chair of the
Research Division of the Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior (SNEB)
and the Secretary of the Journal Committee of SNEB. She received a Professional
Achievement Award in Community Nutrition from SNEB in 2019 and a Best Article
Award from the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior where she serves as
a member of the Editorial Board. She is a member of the Nominating Committee of
the Florida Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and the Leadership Committee of
the USF Urban Food Sovereignty Group.