Between what you hear on TV and read online, nutrition can seem confusing. Deciding what to eat, how much to eat, and when to eat can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. A registered dietitian (RD), or registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN), can help.
Read on for more information about RDN education, training and some of the reasons individuals seek the expert, science-backed guidance and support of an RDN. We also introduce the Mom’s Meals® RDN team
What is an RD and RDN?
Registered dietitians or RDNs are experts in the disciplines of food and nutrition. They translate the complex science of nutrition into healthy, real-world solutions for clients.
An RDN can work with you and support you in developing a realistic and sound eating plan that you can stick with for the long haul. An RDN will partner with you to identify creative and out-of-the-box strategies for meal planning, grocery shopping and mindful eating. Offering nutritional counseling to help you manage chronic health conditions such as high blood pressure, food allergies, heart disease, celiac disease, kidney disease and diabetes is an important role that RDNs play.
Registered dietitian nutritionists draw on their education and experience to provide vital food and nutrition services while helping individuals make positive lifestyle changes tailored to their unique needs.
What is their education?
Registered dietitians and RDNs work in many different employment settings and roughly half have advanced degrees. Some RDNs maintain certifications in specialized practice areas, such as nutrition support, pediatric nutrition and diabetes education. Some are trained chefs, so they combine culinary expertise with nutrition to present delicious and nutritious recipes.
Anyone can call themselves a nutritionist, but only an RDN has completed education and training established by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics. All RDNs must:
- Earn a four-year degree in an approved and accredited nutrition curriculum.
- Complete an extensive supervised program of practice in an internship or program of practice.
- Pass a rigorous registration exam.
- Maintain continuing education credits related to their practice throughout their career.
What is the role of the RD/RDN at Mom's Meals?
Mom's Meals is the leading food as medicine solutions provider. RDs and RDNs working in the research and development department calculate the nutrient content of meals, as well as provide nutrition and ingredient information to clients and staff. They also conduct nutrition counseling telephonically with clients and assist individuals in making nutrition changes to better manage health conditions and overall wellness. RDNs that are part of the commercial team build relationships with strategic partners, and work with agencies and health plans to establish Mom’s Meals as their food as medicine solutions provider.
Where can I find an RDN in my community?
They work in a variety of settings including hospitals, clinics and long-term care facilities, as well as school foodservice and the college environment. Some work in the retail supermarket setting or as part of research and development in manufacturing and food companies.
Others have their own practice, working with clients to address eating issues, overall wellness or specific dietary concerns. Look for cookbooks and nutrition resources authored by an RDN as a source of credible nutrition information. Possibilities for RDNs are endless as consumers become more interested in food and how it affects their health and well-being.
Our dietitians come from a variety of professional experiences and enjoy the opportunities to share the nutrition services of our company with clients nationwide.
Meet our RNs and RDNs
Amanda Daines, RDN, LD
Amanda Daines, RDN, LD
Amanda has been with Mom’s Meals since 2013 and a dietitian for 19 years. In her role as director of research and development and nutrition services, Amanda strives to keep the Mom’s Meals mission in the forefront when leading her team. She does this by providing nutrition solutions for members that preserve health, help combat chronic disease, support recuperation and nourish independence for a higher quality of life.
Samantha Mosbrucker, RD, LD, MPH
Samantha Mosbrucker, RD, LD, MPH
Samantha has been with Mom’s Meals for four years and works from her home in Minnesota. She received a Master’s degree in public health nutrition from the University of Minnesota. Samantha has a passion for reducing food insecurity and making healthy food more accessible. In her free time, Sam loves to engage in joyful movement like hiking, biking, practicing yoga and walking her two dogs.
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Jenny Norgaard, RD, LD
Jenny Norgaard, RD, LD
Jenny has been with Mom’s Meals since August 2020 as a nutrition educator. She graduated from Iowa State University and has been a dietitian for 24 years working in a variety of areas including retail dietetics, hospitals, nursing homes and a weight loss center. She is passionate about health and wellness and loves helping others. In her spare time, she enjoys trying out new recipes, spending time with family, biking, running and traveling.
Catherine Macpherson, MS, RDN
Catherine Macpherson, MS, RDN
Catherine joined Mom’s Meals in 2017 and serves as SVP and chief nutrition officer. She is responsible for ensuring the company’s nutrition solutions meet the needs of its partners by designing clinical programs that meet their strategic objectives. She also works to advance the adoption of food as medicine in health care through work with our government affairs and marketing teams. Catherine is a registered dietitian and health care innovator, earning her Master of Science degree in nutrition from the University of Minnesota and her BA from the University of Michigan.
When she’s not working, you can find Catherine outdoors, walking, hiking, running or skiing with her family.
Bryan Petkoff, RD, LD
Bryan Petkoff, RD, LD
Bryan is from Cleveland, Ohio and is the current representative for Ohio, Michigan and West Virginia. He enjoys his time with his family and friends, and also rooting on the local Cleveland sports teams.
Bryan has been a dietitian for 10 years now and has been with Mom’s Meals since 2017.
Colleen Miller, MS, RDN
Colleen Miller, MS, RDN
Colleen is manager of healthcare partnerships at Mom’s Meals. Her love of sports led her to pursue a career as a dietitian. She has been a dietitian for over 10 years and has worked in various areas including clinical, sports nutrition and medical food.
Julie Gieseman, RD, LD, CDCES
Julie Gieseman, RD, LD, CDCES
Julie just celebrated her four-year anniversary at Mom’s Meals. She is a graduate of Iowa State University and has been a dietitian for over 20 years working with a wide variety of focus areas of dietetics, primarily working as a diabetes educator in many different states. She loves biking, water sports, including kayaking, or anything outdoors and traveling especially to tropical locations.
Taylor Grgurich, RDN, LD
Taylor Grgurich, RDN, LD
Taylor has been with Mom’s Meals since December 2021. She graduated from Iowa State University and has a range of experience including clinical nutrition, special diet education and community nutrition experience. In Taylor’s free time, she enjoys spending time with family, reading, trying new recipes and camping with friends.
Jana Martin, MS, RDN, LD
Jana Martin, MS, RDN, LD
Jana is a director of healthcare partnerships, working with Medicare Advantage health plans to provide post-discharge and chronic condition home delivered meals to members, keeping them out of the hospital. She has been an RDN for 14 years and specializes in diabetes and renal nutrition. When she is not at work, she loves to run, play volleyball and be a hockey mom to her two boys.
When she is not at work, she loves to run, play volleyball and be a hockey mom to her two boys.
Katie Mednick, MBA, RD, LD
Katie Mednick, MBA, RD, LD
Katie is a manager of healthcare partnerships (California, Washington, Arizona, and Colorado). She graduated from University of California Davis and completed her dietetic internship at Dominican University. She has a passion for connecting people with chronic health conditions and disabilities with medically tailored meals because food is medicine!
Brianna Moncada, RDN
Brianna Moncada, RDN
Brianna has been an RD for 7 years. She has a background in clinical nutrition, a passion for promoting health, and helping more individuals get access to nutritious foods to prevent and manage their chronic conditions.
She loves tinkering around in the kitchen with healthy recipe substitutions and trying different cultural cuisines like Thai, Vietnamese and Ethiopian. Variety is the spice of life!
Stacey Silver, RDN
Stacey Silver, RDN
Stacey is manager of healthcare partnerships supporting the states of Florida and Georgia. She was born and raised in South Florida, graduated from Florida State University and has been a part of the Mom’s Meals team since February 2021. She has a passion for nutrition and fitness and enjoys staying active.
Christine Craven, RD
Christine Craven, RD
Christine is a registered dietitian based in New York City. Christine has been with Mom’s Meals for almost 2 years. She completed her undergraduate degree and internship through the University of Delaware. She is experienced working with pediatric and adult populations and is passionate about helping people create a healthy relationship with food.
Emily Prough, RDN, LD
Emily Prough, RDN, LD
Emily has been a nutrition educator with Mom’s Meals since August 2022. She completed her undergraduate degree and dietetic internship through Iowa State University. Prior to working at Mom’s Meals, Emily worked as a clinical dietitian at a local hospital where she gained a wide range of experience in both inpatient and outpatient nutrition counseling. Emily enjoys encouraging others that food should be enjoyed rather than feared when helping them to create an individualized eating plan that works best for their needs.
She enjoys spending time with family and friends, shopping, working out and baking yummy treats!
Jessica Torres, RD, LDN
Jessica Torres, RD, LDN
Jessica has been a member of the Mom’s Meals Dietitian team since 2023. Born and raised in Southern California, she currently calls Florida home. Jessica earned her Bachelor of Science in nutrition and dietetics from Keiser University, after completing an Associate degree in Baking and Pastry Arts from Johnson & Wales University.
A Navy veteran with 10 years of culinary experience, she is also fluent in Spanish and is passionate about providing nutrition education to the Latin/Hispanic community. Her mission is to help individuals lead healthier lives through balanced eating and the development of sustainable, healthy habits.
Outside of work, Jessica enjoys spending time outdoors with her dogs, participating in outdoor activities with her husband and friends, painting, exploring local restaurants, and traveling both domestically and abroad.
Melissa Powell, RDN, CSG
Melissa Powell, RDN, CSG
Melissa received her Bachelor of Science degree from Michigan State University and completed her dietetic internship at the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay. She is certified in gerontological nutrition and adult weight management through the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics.
Melissa has extensive experience in working with older adults through the PACE (Program of All Inclusive Care) and Area Agencies on Aging programs. She enjoys meeting clients where they are in the journey toward health, clarifying nutrition misinformation and highlighting foods to add to daily eating patterns to manage chronic conditions.
Melissa finds joy in life’s simple things: sunshine, laughter, baked goods and time spent in nature.
Ally McGunagle, RD
Ally McGunagle, RD
Ally joined Mom’s Meals in 2024 and is passionate about helping others achieve optimal health through diet and lifestyle changes. Her background as a dietitian includes working at two PACE (Program of All Inclusive Care for the Elderly) programs where she provided health education, oversaw lunch production and coordinated the home delivered meal program. Ally got her degree in dietetics from San Francisco State University and completed her dietetic internship at the San Diego VA Medical Center.
While she enjoyed living in sunny San Diego, she is a California Bay Area native and now lives in Sonoma, California. In her free time Ally enjoys weightlifting, swimming and hiking with her family.
Jenifer Moretto Simon, RD
Jenifer Moretto Simon, RD
Jenifer has been with Mom’s Meals since 2024 and is committed to helping people implement realistic lifestyle changes and use the power of nutrition to improve their health outcomes and quality of life. Jenifer obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in clinical nutrition from the University of California, Davis and completed her internship with Golden Gate Dietetic Internship. She also works in public education, where she encourages youth to lead a healthy lifestyle through balanced eating and movement.
She spends her free time with family and friends and enjoys being out in nature.
Saíd Gonzalez, MPH, RD
Saíd Gonzalez, MPH, RD
Saíd joined Mom’s Meals in 2024. His specialties include working with both English and Spanish-speaking communities in areas such as diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, weight loss/management, general nutrition and wellness, Hispanic culture and cuisine, and plant-based eating.
Saíd was born and raised in Southern California. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in nutrition and food sciences from CSU San Bernardino and Master’s degree in public health from CSU San Marcos.
When he is not practicing as a dietitian, you can find Saíd traveling to different countries around the world or taking part in theatre productions and short films.
Katie Baughman, RDN, LDN
Katie Baughman, RDN, LDN
Katie is a registered dietitian from Portland, Oregon. She completed her bachelor’s degree in dietetics at Purdue University and her dietetic internship at Vanderbilt University. Katie currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee and works as a renal transplant dietitian. Katie first joined our team as a nutrition intern in 2020 and now works as a part-time dietitian for Mom’s Meals.
Outside of work, she is an avid runner, hiker, and reader. Katie also loves to try new recipes and experiment with cooking.
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