Work Experience:
Consultant, Allegheny County Department of Human Services/ Area Agency on Aging. Menu and recipe analysis for new food vendor.
Consultant, Mid-Atlantic Regional Public Health Training Center. Content expert for educational videos and webinar about sustainable food systems.
Mim has lent her expertise to the development and delivery of a 4 part series on sustainable consumption. In addition to sharing her exceptionally broad knowledge base with us, she has exceeded expectations for delivery of content, in terms of both scope and timeliness. It is a pleasure to collaborate with her! – Linda Duchak - Former Director, Training Development Mid-Atlantic Regional Public Health Training Center
Associate Professor, Chatham University. Designed and taught courses in the Food Studies and Exercise Science Programs; advised students; chaired thesis committees; performed and published community-based research.
Project and Program Manager, University of Pittsburgh Diabetes Prevention Program. Managed and implemented diabetes prevention research in at-risk Greater Pittsburgh Area neighborhoods and four SW PA counties.
Program Manager, Allegheny County Health Department. Managed the Chronic Disease Prevention Program, supervising seven staff and multiple grant-funded initiatives.
WIC Coordinator, Onondaga County Health Department. Managed the WIC Program in Syracuse, NY, supervising 25 professional and para-professional staff.
Nutrition educator and dietitian. Provided nutrition education/counseling to WIC participants in New Haven, CT and Syracuse, NY and at the Ambulatory Care Center of the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, MA.
Volunteer Experience:
Executive Committee, PA WIC Advisory Board. Appointed to the inaugural WIC Advisory Board to provide recommendations to the PA Department of Health as it strives to increase WIC participation and make the program better meet the needs of its participants.
[Mim’s] passion for addressing food insecurity brought a critical advocacy perspective to our work. [She] consistently championed equity and access, helping us better align our efforts with the real challenges our participants face. –Ms. Sally Zubairu-Cofield, Bureau Director of the PA Department of Health’s Women, Infants and Children Program
Co-chair, Board of Directors, Pittsburgh Food Policy Council. Co-led the PFPC as it transitioned to a 501c3 organization and inaugurated its first Board of Directors. Co-chaired the Governance Committee where the Guiding Principles and election processes were created.
Board Member, Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. As chair of the Food and Nutrition Committee, facilitated the creation of the Choose Healthy Options Program designed to increase the food bank’s healthy foods inventory.
Steering Committee, Division of Sustainable Food Systems. Active member and 2026-2027 Chair of this Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior division.
Community & Business Presentations:
The Evolving Landscape of SNAP. Webinar sponsored by the National Grocers Association Foundation, May 24, 2023.
Regional Food Systems and their Role in Ending Nutrient Insecurity. Podcast https://fooddignitymovement.org/podcast/episode-118-regional-food-systems-and-their-role-in-ending-nutrient-security/ July, 2022.
COVID 19 and Food Security: Focus on the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). Webinar, for members of Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior, December 2020.
Managing the Local Food Chain. Panel Presentation, Covestro LLC’s THINC30: The UN SDGs in the New Now: Relevance and Recovery, October, 2020.
Building a Resilient Food Culture: Health, Nutrition and Race. Panel presentation sponsored by Food 21, Pitt Honors and Greater Pittsburgh Comm Food Bank, October 2020.
Sustainability Program: What Can I Do? Wade Trim employee presentation, January 2020.
Better Nutrition, Better Tomorrow. Annual SW PA Bread for the World Workshop, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, May 2019.
Community Gardens and Food Security. Junior League of Pittsburgh, April 2019.
Food Deserts and Health: It’s Complicated. Invited speaker, Feeding Health: Addressing Food Insecurity in Clinical and Community Settings. Allegheny General Hospital, November 2016.
Academic Presentations:
Seidel M, Barns H, Klostermann C, Livingston L, Frey S, Best A. Addressing Campus Food Insecurity: Insights, Solutions and Community Partnerships. Poster Session, Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior (SNEB) annual conference July 8 - 11, 2025.
Seidel M.Reflections on Institutional and Public Policy Challenges to Campus Food Security Efforts. ASFS/AFHVS annual conference. Corvallis, Oregon June 18 - 21, 2025.
Kairios R, Smith D, Seidel M, Nordin, S: Community Participation in Nutrition Programming & Research: Building Sustainable Equitable Food Systems via Community Informed Engagement. Society for Nutrition Edu and Behavior 2024 Annual Conference. Knoxville, TN, July 2024.
Seidel M, Murakami C, Freeman L, Jones A, Turner T: Impact of COVID-19 on Small and Mid-sized Farmers: looking Back and Looking Forward. Round Table, Agriculture, Food and Human Values Conference, May 2022.
Seidel M, Bear T, Wiederecht C, Isiguzo C, Keenan E: Advancing Healthy Food Access through Mobile Market Enhancement. Poster Session, Food and Nutrition Conference and Exhibition. October 2019.
Seidel M, Clark J, Palmer A, Applefield S: Food Policy Councils and Academia: Reciprocal Relationships in Action. Round Table Discussion at AFHVS and ASFS Annual Meeting. June 2018.
Seidel M, Hamilton M, Gordon L:Multi-level Intervention Increases WIC FMNP Redemption Rate in Pittsburgh, PA. Oral presentation, Assoc. for the Study of Food and Society Annual Meeting. June 2016.
Publications:
Murakami CD, Seidel M, Tsai CL, & Pope JD (2023). COVID-19 and Pennsylvania farmers: Financial impacts, relief programs, and resiliency strategies during the 2020 growing season. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2023.123.01
Seidel M, Murakami CD, Egan JF, Pope JD, Tsai CL: Impact of COVID-19 on Pennsylvania farm revenue: Looking back at the 2020 season.Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems and Community Development Vol. 11(1):21-26, 2021. https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2021.111.015
Seidel M, Brink L, Hamilton M, Leslie Gordon, L: Increasing WIC Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program Redemption Rates: Results and Policy Recommendation. Progress in Community Health Partnerships: Research, Education, and Action Winter 2018 (4):431-439. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/716651/pdf
Seidel M, Laquatra I, Woods M, Sharrard J: Applying a Nutrient- Rich Foods Index Algorithm to Address Nutrient Content of Food Bank Food.J Acad Nutr and Diet available online January 2015: http://www.andjrnl.org/article/S2212-2672(14)01645-1/pdf
Advisory Committee on Childhood Obesity . Childhood Obesity: Report of the Advisory Committee on Childhood Obesity. Commissioned by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of PA. Coordinated by the Joint State Government Commission. June 2014.
Seidel MC, Bettencourt L, Zgibor JC: Diabetes Disparities in Allegheny County p38 - 53 in Allegheny County Health in Black and White Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh, April 2011
Seidel MC, Powell RO, Zgibor JC, Siminerio LM, Piatt GA: Translating the Diabetes Prevention Program into an Urban Medically Underserved Community.Diabetes Cares 31(4):684-689, 2008.