Public Health hosts 'Healthy Plates' event for young students

January 13, 2026 (Volume 49, Number 9)
Article by Ranelle Brew

young students, GVSU students and faculty in white aprons in an industrial kitchen in DCIH

Cindy Brown stands in front of a long conference table, young students seated at table with plates and silverware and glasses set on the table

Young students pose with GVSU public health faculty member Ranelle Brew (back row, right) and students at the December 'Healthy Plates Culinary Academy' at the DeVos Center for Interprofessional Health.

Ranelle Brew, professor and director of the Master of Public Health program, received a national Phi Kappa Phi Love of Learning award to support an event that teaches young students about healthy eating, cooking and dinner etiquette.

The Healthy Plates Culinary Academy on December 6 brought 12 students, ages 8-13, to the culinary kitchen at the DeVos Center for Interprofessional Health. Students were recruited for this pilot program.

Participants spent the morning learning about healthy eating and foods, then prepared a full menu that included a snack, appetizer, entree and dessert. "The kitchen in DCIH was full of energy as kids mixed, chopped, tasted and helped each other create nutritious dishes through the program," Brew said.

Cindy Brown, employer development manager for the Career Center, gave a kid-friendly etiquette lesson about table manners during the meal.

GVSU graduate students Rhylee McConnaughey, Bella Andreski, Arielle Hayward, Madeline Krawciw and undergraduate student Rachel Markosky, a clinical dietetics major, helped facilitate the event.

The young students took home freshly prepared focaccia bread dough, ready to cook at home with their families, and a (soon-to-be-published) version of a kid-friendly cookbook, "The Curious Kitchen: Healthy Cooking for Kids," by Brew and Krawciw.

– Ranelle Brew is a professor and director of the Master of Public Health program.