Our Crowdfunding Groups
Students, colleagues, and friends of the late Judi Brooks, PhD, RD still fondly remember and
envision her teaching in the Marshall Building. She mentored many graduate and undergraduate
students in her 23 years at EMU and was more than a professor of nutrition and dietetics. For
many, Dr. Brooks was more than a teacher—she was a role model, parental figure, and trusted
confidant. Judi brought a very caring and warm presence to her classes and students appreciated
her knowledge and encouragement. Judi’s exceptional record of teaching, research, service, and
collegiality over the years has enriched and left a long-lasting legacy in the Dietetics program,
Human Nutrition program, School of Health Sciences, and the university.
Dr. Brooks passed away on Feb. 21, 2022 and is greatly missed by her School of Health Sciences
colleagues, university colleagues, students, and alumni. In April 2022 she was awarded
posthumous recognition as Emeritus Faculty. Judi began teaching at EMU in 1999 and served as
program director of dietetics for six years. She was promoted to full professor in 2009 and was a
visionary for EMU online dietetics degrees. Dr. Brooks chaired and served on many thesis
committees.
She advocated for interdisciplinary training of healthcare professionals and co-developed IHHS
260 Aging to Infancy: A Life Course Retrospective, a prerequisite course taken by many
students in the College of Health and Human Services. Dr. Brooks was a founding member of
EMU’s Autism Collaborative Center and the nutrition member of the team that launched that
facility in 2009. She was a founding member of The PediaTrac™ Project, a multi-disciplinary
project dedicated to creating a comprehensive, user-friendly tool for tracking infant development
across key domains, one of which is feeding and eating. In 2018 the PediaTrac™ Team was
awarded a $4.5 million, five year grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver NICHD of the NIH.
This was the first NIH R01 for EMU and Dr. Brooks was proud to be a member of the team.
Colleagues, and friends have come together to create a scholarship that honors Dr. Judi Brooks’
legacy by empowering and encouraging students to pursue their passion in nutrition and
dietetics. The goal for the scholarship fund is to reach $10,000 so an endowed fund can be
established.