Research Assistant Professor
Adolescent Food Safety Education
Primary Affiliation:UT FST
Expertise: Food Safety Education
Professional Preparation
B.S. Education, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, 1997
Ph.D. Curriculum, Research, and Evaluation, University of Tennessee, 2007
“Identifying Processes of Teacher Application and Adoption of a Novel Instructional Strategy”
Other Appointments
Adjunct Assistant Professor - University of Tennessee, Educational Psychology and Counseling
Publications
Murphy, L.; Beavers, A.S. & Richards, J. (2015)
Exploring the Impact of an Educational Intervention on Self-Efficacy of Food
Safety in Adolescents through Qualitative Research Methods. Journal of Food
Protection Trends. (In Review).
Richards, J., Albin, M. (2015). Using Effective
Instructional Theory to Redesign an Introductory Course to Promote Engagement
and Retention of Food Science Majors. Journal of Food Science Education. (In
Review).
Richards, J., Albin, M. (2015). Leveraging Group
Research Projects to Increase Students' Scientific Literacy. Journal of Food
Science Education. (In Review).
LoRe, S., & Richards, J. (2014). Portion control:
A simple and easy way to “Flip” your classroom to better engage middle school
learners. South Carolina Association for Middle Level Education Journal
(SCAMLEJ). (In Press).
Beavers, A., Murphy, L., and Richards, J. (2015).
Investigating Change in Adolescent Self-Efficacy of Food Safety through
Educational Interventions. Journal of Food Science Education 14(2).
Nambisan, S., & Richards, J. (2014).
Transportation Systems STEM Summer Academy for Teachers. Presented at the
Engineering Leaders Conference on Engineering Education, November 9-11, 2014,
Doha, Qatar.
Bishop, P., Huck, S., Ownley, B., Richards, J., &
Skolits, G. (2014). Impacts of interdisciplinary research center affiliation on
participant publication and collaboration activities. Research Evaluation
2014; doi: 10.1093/reseval/rvu019.
Richards, J. K., & Beavers, A. S. (2014). What
Implications Does a Baseline of Self-efficacy of Food Safety in Adolescent
Populations Have for Future Food Safety Education Interventions? Food
Protection Trends, 34(1), 20-24.
Beavers, A., Richards, J., McCallum, R. S., Davidson,
P. M., Skolits, G., & Brandon, M. (2013). Measuring self-efficacy of food
safety in adolescent populations. Food Protection Trends 33(3), 127-132.
Beavers, A., Richards, J., McCallum, R. S.,
Davidson, P. M., Skolits, G., & Brandon, M. (2012).Measuring self-efficacy
of food safety in adolescent populations. Food Protection Trends. (In
Review).
Beavers, A., Lounsbury, J., Richards, J., Huck,
S., Skolits, G., & Esquivel, S. (2012). Practical considerations for using
factor analysis in educational research. Practical Assessment,
Research, and Evaluation Online (In Review).
Richards, J., Pratt, C., Skolits, G.,
Burney, J., (2012). Developing and evaluating the impact of a
train-the-trainer model for effectively disseminating food safety education to
middle school students. Journal of Extension (In Press).
Richards, J. & Skolits, G.
(2009). Sustaining Instructional Change: The Impact of Professional
Development on Teacher Adoption of a New Instructional Strategy. Research
in the Schools 16(2), 41-59.
Skolits, G. & Richards, J. (2009).
Designing and Applying Project Fidelity Assessment for a Teacher
Implemented Middle School Instructional Improvement Pilot
Intervention.” Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation 24(1),
135-158.
Pedigo, A.; edigo, A.; Richards, J.; Saxton, A.
M.; D’Souza, D., & Draughon, F. A. (2009) Characterization of food safety
knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of adolescents in east Tennessee. Journal
of Food Protection Trends 29(10), 626-641.
Richards, J. (2008). Beyond
Bacteria: Science and the Art of Food Safety. Middle Ground
12(2),35-36.
Richards, J.; Skolits, G.; Burney, J.; Pedigo, A.;
& Draughon, F. A. (2008). Validation of an interdisciplinary food
safety curriculum targeted at middle school students and correlated to state
educational standards. Journal of Food Science Education 7:54-61.
Richards, J.; Skolits, G.; Richards, H.; &
Draughon, F. A. (2006) “Snapshots of Science in Practice: The Science of
Salmonella.” Educational Leadership, vol. 64 (4), December
2006/January 2007.
Richards, J. (2005) “A Review of the Research
Literature on Effective Teaching.” Contracted for Edvantia, Charleston,
WV.
Awards
CDC -
Community Coalitions for Change (C3). Healthy Living in Tennessee. PI
Laura Stephenson, Co-PI(s) Heather Wallace, Janie Burney, Betty Greer, Karen
Franck, Danita Brookings, and Jennifer Richards. $4,785,925.
Grocery
Manufacturer’s Association, Science and Education Foundation, 2014, Unrestricted
Donation to Hands On: Real World Lessons for Middle School Classrooms,
J. Richards, $25,000.
US
Department of Transportation – Federal Highway Administration. Garrett A.
Morgan Technology and Transportation Education Program Clearinghouse. PI
Knox County Schools, Co-PIs Jerry Everett and Jennifer Richards. UTIA
Budget $99,933
Tennessee
Department of Transportation, Safe Routes to School, 2013. Validation of
Tennessee Safe Routes to School Curricula (K-8). J. Richards. $31,459.
Federal
Transit Administration Workforce Development Program, 2013. TRANSIT - Your
Ride to the Future J. Everett & J. Richards. $265,226.
National
Institutes of Health, 2013. Program for Excellence and Equity Research, C.B.
Peterson, E. L. Brothers, C. Hodges, S. Lenhart, G. Reed, and J. Richards.
$6,311,772
UTIA AgResearch Innovative Grant Awards, 2012. Reducing
Childhood Obesity through Experiential Learning with Indoor Classroom Vegetable
Gardens. D. Kopsell and J. Richards. $15,000.
UTIA
Collaborative and Innovative Teaching Awards, 2013. Recruitment of
Underrepresented Students into the STEAM Pipeline. S. Jean-Philippe;
J. Richards; D. Richards; K. Gwinn; M. Smith; J. Logan; J. Sorochan; &
A. Pulte. $10,000
Tennessee
Department of Transportation, Safe Routes to School, 2012. K-8 and After School
Program Curriculum Development Project. J. Richards. $166,022
Grocery
Manufacturer’s Association, Science and Education Foundation, 2011,
Unrestricted Donation to Food Safety in the Classroom, J. Richards,
$25,000.
Grocery
Manufacturer’s Association, Science and Education Foundation, 2010,
Unrestricted Donation to Food Safety in the Classroom, J. Richards,
$25,000.
Grocery
Manufacturer’s Association, Science and Education Foundation, 2009,
Unrestricted Donation to Food Safety in the Classroom, J. Richards,
$25,000.
Grocery
Manufacturer’s Association, Science and Education Foundation, 2008,
Unrestricted Donation to Food Safety in the Classroom, J. Richards,
$25,000.
USDA-National Institute
for Food Agriculture-Higher Education Challenge. The “Students Training in
Agriculture and Related Sciences” (STARS) Initiative: A Culturally Competent
Approach for Understanding Food Security and Hunger, and Food Safety in a Local
and Global Context. T. Cooper, S. Jean-Philippe, J. Richards, C.
Stephens, A. Pulte, and M. Smith. $142,762
National
Integrated Food Safety Initiative Award, 2011, USDA NIFA Program, Building
Better Food Safety Education Programs: How Optimizing Fidelity of
Implementation Can Maximize Desired Outcomes. J.
Richards, A. Beavers, J. Burney, and D. Loveday. $599,975.
National
Integrated Food Safety Initiative Award, 2009, USDA CSREES Program,
Investigating food safety self-efficacy in adolescent populations through
survey research and an educational intervention, J.
Richards, M. Brandon, G. Skolits, J. Burney, S. McCallum, and F. Ann
Draughon. $599,860
National
Integrated Food Safety Initiative Award, 2008, USDA CSREES Program, Food Safety
in the Classroom: Building a Model for Expansion and Long-Term Sustainability, J.
Richards, F. A. Draughon, J. Burney, and G. Skolits. $597,399
National
Integrated Food Safety Initiative Award 2005, USDA CSREES Program, Implementing
a Dynamic Food Safety Curriculum Targeted at Middle School Students, Co-PI’s:
F.A. Draughon, J. Richards, G. Skolits, H. Richards, J. Burney, and P. King,
$583,750
Food
Safety Center of Excellence Award 2003, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville,
Development of an Integrated Food Safety Curriculum for Implementation in the
State of Tennessee, J. Richards, $32,000
Synergistic Activities
Collaborating with Knox County Schools and the UT Center for
Transportation Research to design and implement an interdisciplinary
curriculum that teaches key STEM concepts and skills while actively
engaging students in the field of transportation research.
Designed interdisciplinary curriculum for USDA National Integrated
Food Safety Initiative Food Safety in the Classroom. The curriculum
includes hands-on, experiential learning through a series of
interdisciplinary lessons that are directly correlated to state
standards for math, science, social studies, and language arts.
Designed and implemented an interdisciplinary project based
curriculum targeted at 7th grade students who were performing below
grade level in math and reading. This curriculum incorporated
technology and innovative teaching strategies to help engage
disenfranchised learners.
Editorial Board - Food Protection Trends (2008-Present)