The UW-Madison Department of Food Science is committed to building a culture that embraces justice, diversity, inclusion, and equity, believing that these values are foundational elements of our excellence and fundamental components of a positive and enriching learning and working environment for all students, faculty and staff.

Questions for Us
What do we do to create a positive environment?
Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW–Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals. The Department of Food Science fulfills this mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background — people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.
Our vision is to create a diverse, inclusive, and equitable department where all students, staff, and faculty are welcome and included, reflecting a healthy departmental and campus community.
Our Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion committee meets together on a monthly basis to advise the department leadership on issues of equity, diversity and inclusion. As a committee of faculty, staff and students, we strive to create a positive environment for everyone involved in the Department of Food Science.
Staff/Faculty Resources
Mentoring Training Requirement + Resources
JEDI Training Requirement + Resources
Information on FS JEDI committee
Members
- Tu-Anh Huynh, Assistant Professor
- Emily Merlin, Graduate Program Coordinator
- Scott Rankin, Chair and Professor
- Kelden Cook, Graduate Student
- Wendy Lu, Undergraduate Student
Charge
The Food Science JEDI Committee advises the department on issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion. The committee shall perform reviews of specific complaints of inequity in the department and report to the executive committee.
Additional Functions of this Committee:
- Capture, report and archive metrics of significance to the departmental JEDI health.
- Serve as a conduit to the department for CALS and campus JEDI resources, professional development opportunities, and initiatives.
- Guide and implement actions to improve JEDI health present in the departmental Five Year Plan and as presented by CALS and campus.
- Identify and prioritize additional departmental goals and actions necessary to improve departmental JEDI.
Student Resources
Campus JEDI Resources
- Division of Diversity, Equity & Educational Achievement
- Department of Family Medicine and Community Health Diversity Events
- Division of Extension: Tribal food sovereignty resources
- Division of Extension: Radical justice in food systems – learning resources and tools
- Food Justice Collective
- Sifting & Reckoning
- Multicultural Student Center
- UHS Mental Health Services
College JEDI Resources
Scholarship/Fellowship Programs

Our Shared Future
The University of Wisconsin–Madison rests in the ancestral land of the Ho-Chunk Nation, the People of the Big Voice, who have called this place Teejop (day-JOPE) for time immemorial. We as a university community continue to create and build upon our partnerships with the 12 First Nations of Wisconsin. As a state university we respect the inherent sovereignty and unique legal status, as affirmed and set forth in state and federal law, of the First Nations of Wisconsin.
About Our JEDI Committee
Our Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion committee meet together on a monthly basis to advise the department on issues of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion. We strive to create a positive environment for everyone involved in the Department of Food Science.
