Lisa Akers PhD, RDN, IBCLC, RLC, FAND

Dr. Lisa Akers has been working in the field of public health nutrition and human lactation for over 20 years.  Lisa is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), a Fellow of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (FAND), and an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC).  She began her career in the WIC program working directly with new families and later transitioned to academia where she became passionate about developing new IBCLCs and RDNs.  Lisa is a currently Research Scientist with the Gretchen Swanson Center for Nutrition where she advances the field of measurement, evaluation, and statistical analysis for nutrition-related programs.  The focus of her current research is related to data equity and the intersection of dietetics and human lactation.

Lisa has served on numerous national and international boards and committees including the International Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA), Women’s Health Dietetic Practice Group (WH DPG) of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and the United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC).  Aside from her background in human lactation and nutrition, Lisa’s expertise in nonprofit leadership has afforded her the opportunity to work as a consultant with numerous organizations in areas such as change management, fundraising, governance, grant writing, program evaluation, and strategic planning.