Dr. Sarah Misyak

Sarah Misyak, PhD is the Integrated Research-Extension, Food Systems and Policy Evaluator for Virginia Cooperative Extension’s Family Nutrition Program (SNAP-Ed and EFNEP). She received her doctorate from the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods and Exercise at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia in January of 2014 and then completed a postdoctoral experience with the Family Nutrition Program before becoming the Integrated Research-Extension, Food Systems and Policy Evaluator. She specializes in program evaluation for policy, systems, and environmental initiatives.

Her past research has been focused on increasing access for limited-resource populations living in food deserts to fresh and healthy foods by overcoming barriers to shopping at farmers markets by working with low-income mothers with young children and by supporting farmers market managers in their efforts to accept Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) and launch sustainable Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) double match programs.  She coordinated the formative research efforts for the SNAP/EBT Tool Kit now available on the Virginia Farmers Market Manager Association website and is active in childhood obesity/chronic disease prevention through contributions to nutritional comparisons of packed and school lunches following the implementation of the 2012-2013 National School Lunch Program standards.