Freedman, Marjorie

Freedman, Marjorie

Professor, Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging

Email

Preferred: marjorie.freedman@sjsu.edu

Telephone

Preferred: (408) 924-3105

I have been at SJSU since 2005.  I continue to strive, through my work at the university and in the community, to make San Jose State and Santa Clara County the healthiest in the region! In addition to teaching, I have conducted research on environmental correlates of obesity, nutrition labeling, portion size, food insecurity, community nutrition and nutrition education. Please see the link at the top of the page for a list of my publications.

I am also interested in nutrition policy and worked with former San Jose City Councilmember Ken Yeager to make San Jose the first city to require 100% healthy vending in all City of San Jose library vending machines. This was followed by a policy requiring all city vending machines to have at least 50% healthy items. I have continued to work with Ken and members of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors on menu labeling, the fast-food toy-ban, and bringing a CSA to county employees. Santa Clara county was the first county in the country to institute menu labeling, which was incorporated into the Affordable Health Care Act of 2010, and the first county in the country to institute a ban on provision of toys with meals that fail to meet nutritional guidelines. As goes Santa Clara County, so goes California; as goes California, so goes the U.S.!

My goal is to make San Jose State a "healthy" campus. With funding from Kaiser Permanente, I started the Spartan Smart Cart and a CSA program on campus.

With funding from the Santa Clara County Public Health Department, I spearheaded the effort to create and implement healthful food and beverage policies in a faith-based organization (Most Holy Trinity Church). To download a copy of the TOOLKIT please click the Download link to the right.

Education

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Nutritional Science, Univ Of Cal-Davis, 1985

Bio

Marjorie Freedman, MS, PhD, is a Professor at San Jose State University. She received her degrees from UC Davis, and has worked in the field of nutrition for over 30 years. Prior to coming to SJSU, Dr. Freedman worked in the food industry, for a non-profit educational company, and as a nutrition consultant for private businesses, lawfirms, and individuals.

As Manager, Scientific Affairs, for The NutraSweet Company, Freedman traveled throughout the US and abroad educating health care professionals about the safety and benefits of the high-intensity sweetener NutraSweet (aspartame). As the VP of Education for INR, a non-profit scientific organization dedicated to education in the fields of health and nutrition, she prepared curriculum on a wide variety of topics, including weight loss, obesity, diabetes, performance nutrition, memory and cognition, cardiovascular health, alternative medicine, mental health, and women's health. Freedman presented over 650 seminars to health care professionals throughout the United States and Canada on these and other topics. As a nutrition consultant, Freedman provided expertise to Shape Up America!, The Kellogg Company, The McDonalds Corp., Murdoch books, and the USDA. She authored the review Popular Diets: A Scientific Review" and was on the faculty of the American Dietetic Association's Weight Management Certification Program.

As a parent volunteer, Freedman spearheaded the effort to remove junk food from her daughter's middle school in San Jose, prior to California legislation requiring such removal (click here for the article in the Mercury News). She served on the San Jose Unified School District's SHAPE committee, the Santa Clara County Office of Education's Fit for Learning Task Force (which is currently The Coordinated School Health Program) and was on the Steering Committee for Healthy Silicon Valley. She also served as a Health Commissioner for Santa Clara County. She served on the Board of Three Squares and was on the Board of 18Reasons whose mission is to "empower our community with the creativity and confidence needed to buy, cook, and eat good food every day."

Freedman has been an outspoken advocate for environmental and policy changes that impact wellness. She worked with councilmember Ken Yeager on 100% healthy vending machine policies in city of San Jose libraries and 50% healthy vending policies in the city of San Jose. She testified in favor of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors ordinance banning toys with unhealthy meals. She worked with Most Holy Trinity Church on developing and passing a healthy food and beverage policy. Her work was funded by a Communities Putting Prevention to Work Grant, and is highlighted in this video, honored by Michelle Obama's Let's Move! Faith and Communities Video Challenge. Let's Move Video! Dr. Freedman received a Guardians of Health Award from the California Center for Public Health Advocacy in 2013.

Dr. Freedman conducts research in the area of nutrition education, environmental correlates of obesity, and sustainability. She started the “Spartan Smart Cart," a mobile produce cart on the SJSU campus, which aimed to increase access to fresh produce among faculty, staff and students. She started the CSA program on the SJSU campus and in the community.

Links