Mentoring Healthy Lifestyles

The ClemsonLIFE (Learning Is For Everyone) program at Clemson University is one of few programs in the nation whose goal is to ensure that individuals with intellectual disabilities have a chance to pursue higher education. There are several groups at Clemson associated with the ClemsonLIFE program. One of those programs is the Creative Inquiry team, ClemsonLIFE: Nutrition and Healthy Cooking, which focuses on helping the LIFE students become more nutritionally independent and learn how to cook a variety of healthy meals for themselves.

Assistant professor of food, nutrition and packaging sciences, Dr. Elliot D. Jesch, became the head of this Creative Inquiry in the fall of 2015. There are 20 health science and nutrition majors. At the beginning of each semester Jesch leads an orientation session in which Creative Inquiry students receive mentor training and guidelines for the semester. After this meeting, a pair of student mentors is assigned to each ClemsonLIFE student apartment. Each week, the students meet with their ClemsonLIFE mentees. Together they create a different meal each week in the mentee’s apartment.

After cooking and eating dinner together, the students enjoy spending time with their mentees. By cooking and eating together, the mentors model healthy nutrition practices such as proper portions and healthy eating habits for the ClemsonLIFE students. However, this Creative Inquiry also helps build friendships. At the end of the each semester, the ClemsonLIFE students cook for the mentors using a recipe they learned during the semester. Then, all the recipes from the semester of cooking are compiled in a recipe book for the ClemsonLIFE students to keep and use in the years to come.

This Creative Inquiry team has an exciting development in the works. The team is working closely with a digital application (app) development Creative Inquiry to create a ClemsonLIFE cooking app. With the app, students will be able to locate a library of recipes as well as an easy-to-use interface that informs them of the ingredients they need to make each recipe. According to Jesch, “The app would be very helpful for them (the ClemsonLIFE students), but I could probably also use it myself searching through my pantry as well.” The team’s goal is to make it an app that is fun, straightforward and practical enough for anyone to use. Overall, this Creative Inquiry is an exciting program which equips ClemsonLIFE students with not only a cookbook full of recipes they have learned how to make throughout the semester, but also with a better knowledge of nutrition as well as portion control. Through the help of this team, ClemsonLIFE students can be more confident about cooking for themselves and others, giving them one more stepping stone toward a more independent lifestyle.