The family and consumer sciences and culinary arts departments have developed a joint bachelor of science dietetics degree with a concentration in either culinary or nutrition to be offered this fall. This will provide Nicholls’ dietetic and culinary arts students with greater mobility in their fields, Dr. Robert Harrington, dean of the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute, said.

Students who complete the 132 required credit hours and who pass the Registered Dietitian Exam will receive the degree, Dr. Pamela Kirkley, FACS department head, said. Internships will also be required.

While there is a program like this at Johnson-Wales, another culinary institute, Nicholls will be the first university in the country to offer such a program, Kirkley said.

After receiving this degree, students would be eligible to work in facilities such as hospitals, nursing homes and food manufacturing firms, Harrington said.

At such facilities, there is often a lack of communication between the chef and the dietitian, he said. The goal of this degree program is to increase communication and knowledge between these employees.

“It is bringing the best of both worlds together,” he said.

Because it is a joining of the two already established departments, there will be no need for increased funding or faculty, Kirkley said.

“It’s just blending [the courses] together,” she said.

The program was approved by Nicholls’ Courses and Curriculum Committee, Kirkley said.

“Because it is a concentration, it did not have to go through the Board of Regents,” she said.

The dietetics portion of the program meets the requirements set by the American Dietetics Association. The ADA granted the program as a whole with Developmental Accreditation, Dr. Jacinda Bonvillain, FACS instructor, said.

The program will go up for full accreditation in 2004, she said.

As of now, Kirkley predicts a dozen students will begin the program.

The departments are working to increase publicity about the program through brochures, she said.

Members from FACS and the Chef John Folse Culinary Institute will attend the National Restaurant Association Show this May in Chicago.

“We are really excited about having a unique program that will benefit students in a very positive way in their fields,” Kirkley said.