I will use my enthusiasm and knowledge in the areas of health, nutrition, instructional design
and entrepreneurship to educate, motivate and provide guidance through public speaking.
Toni Burkhalter
The first semester she taught the class at UIUC, a guest lecturer came to the podium to ask about the impact of the class to the students.
The guest lecturer posed the following iClicker true/false question: “taking FSHN 120 this semester has FOREVER changed my view about food and how I can manage my risk for disease” and an astounding 88% of the students responded with a “true” sharing the positive impact the class had on their life.
Toni Burkhalter graduated from University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign (UIUC) in 1999 with an M.S. focusing the body’s response to dietary changes. In 2001, she began teaching nutrition, anatomy and physiology at Parkland College. Toni partnered with community schools and enlisted the aid of her students to spearhead “healthy lunch challenge” and “walk across America” events featured in local media. Toni was awarded a Parkland Faculty Entrepreneurial Fellowship based on her focus on business and social entrepreneurship in the classroom and remains a member of the Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership at UIUC. Her passion for how the body adapts to positive environmental challenges such as exercise and balanced nutrition encouraged her to return to school for a second advanced degree while working at Parkland. She earned an M.S. in exercise physiology from UIUC in 2010 with a focus on the effects of exercise on cognition and academic performance. In 2016, while continuing to work full‐time, she dove back into the research at the University of Illinois working on a clinical trial that focused on the effects of prebiotics and probiotics on cognition and health. She is published in peer review journal articles and has received local and national awards for curriculum design. She was a member of the Parkland Speaker’s Bureau speaking in forums ranging from third‐ grade classrooms to the Elected Officials of Illinois in Springfield. In August 2017, she resigned as an Associate Professor of Biology and Kinesiology at Parkland College teaching classes that focus on the effects of exercise and nutrition on the body. And began teaching a large contemporary nutrition course as a Senior Instructor at the University of Illinois.
Nutrition
Exercise/Recess
Teacher Training
Academin Performance
Professional Relationships
Keynotes
Survey Says
Decisions should never be made without logical reasons and data to support the change. Let’s discuss using lunch survey feedback as the basis for data driven decisions.
Assessing Food Waste
Rather than relying on your eyes or other’s perception to come to conclusions on food waste, let us share with you how to best assess student lunch food waste.
Ask the Children
How do you get to know your students’ food preferences without a lot of work? Easily
assess food exposure and preferences in children with a 60‐second food listing.
Feeding Your Finicky Eaters
One way to feed your finicky eater is to think like them. Let’s discuss common problems with finicky eaters to facilitate better food acceptance.
School Lunch Timing and its Impact on Food Choices and Consumption
Research at UIUC was conducted to examine food consumption and food waste based on the timing of recess relative to school lunch.
As a Parent…
There are many misconceptions that parents have regarding school lunch programs. What are they and how can we educate the parents on the benefits of a school lunch program?
The Good News is “They Know You”
Children are averse to trying new foods. It generally takes several introductions of a
healthy food before children will decide a food is acceptable. This information can be quite helpful when developing new food products. Let’s discuss!
Select Honors
- UIUC Teachers Ranked as Excellent, University of Illinois- Spring 2018, Fall 2019, Spring 2019
- Karen Wold Level the Learning Field Award, University of Illinois- 2019
- Teaching Excellence Award, Parkland College- 2016
- Forty Under 40 Award, Central Illinois Business Magazine- 2014
- Outstanding Teaching Excellence Award, Parkland College- 2011
- Faculty fellow at UIUC Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership- 2007
- Outstanding Blended Course Award for Excellence in Distance Learning from ITC- 2006
Lets connect
We would love to hear about your successes, struggles, needs, and provide you with additional information on how NxtGen can serve you.