Cara Gabris, Mba, Ms, Rd Email & Phone Number

Hillside, New Jersey, United States

• Facilitate strategic planning and act as a thought partner to the executive leadership team, driving impactful decisions• Key point of contact with elected officials, food bank leadership, and stakeholders, fostering strong relationships• Lead initiatives to enhance community engagement and drive positive change in the food bank sector

New Jersey, United States

Distribution consulting for the Community Food Bank of New Jersey

Houston, Texas, United States

• Directed strategy to distribute goal of 200,000,000 pounds of food in FY22 with 35% of the total distribution comprised of fresh produce while maintaining job duties in home delivery • Increased produce distribution as a percentage of total distribution by 20% over a 9-month period• Lead weekly operations meeting of key stakeholders in warehouse, transportation, procurement, volunteer services, facilities, and partner services to plan and strategize effective distribution • Completed the 12-month Food Is Medicine Coalition (FIMC) Accelerator program learning operations and policy to be positioned to lead the logistics for a medically tailored meal home delivery service

Houston, Texas, United States

• Directed logistics for the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) and Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) delivering over 2.3 million meals in FY21• Provided vision for the development of the Houston Food Bank’s home delivery program to support over 100,000 deliveries equating to over 2.5 million meals since inception• Collaborated with programs and external partners to provide home delivery services for senior box, backpack buddy, nutrition education, kid’s café and to patients ordered to quarantine or isolate due to COVID-19• Managed creative partnerships with third party delivery services such as Amazon, Door Dash, and Task Rabbit to facilitate home deliveries in addition to building home delivery volunteer program • Secured funding and guided the design for an internal home delivery application for neighbors to order food via client choice to be fulfilled by partners and delivered by volunteers

Houston, Texas Area

• Administered the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-ED) acting as liaison to Feeding Texas to provide nutrition education to approximately 12,000 participants annually while maintaining job duties as senior box program manager• Created budget reports using Budget Maestro, performed monthly budget audits, and prepared annual budget projections for upcoming fiscal year • Managed two teams consisting of fourteen employees of diverse backgrounds and skillsets • Collaborated with communications, accounting, partner services, transportation, procurement, and other departments to meet program needs• Researched, developed, and assisted in writing grant applications for state and private funding mechanisms

Houston, Texas

• Administered the Commodity and Supplemental Food Program (CSFP) that provided food resources to 11,366 seniors monthly, which included preparing and overseeing program budgeting, managing distribution logistics, ensuring adequate product inventory, and monitoring Texas Department of Agriculture policy compliance• Strategically recruited and coordinated CSFP site locations by assessing food insecurity data mapping, transportation routing, and client participation to optimize program efficiency • Analyzed distribution processes and implemented procedure changes. Implemented distribution process change that resulted in reduced participant wait time and improved client satisfaction • Acted as Link2Feed data manager by understanding, monitoring, and utilizing Link2Feed for CSFP client intake and participated in monthly interdepartmental team meetings to discuss priorities for Link2Feed improvements

Houston, Texas Area

• Advised three clinic managers in clinic operations, human resources activities, client dispute resolution, and quality assurance initiatives, serving as liaison between administration and lower management, while maintaining previous job duties as clinic manager• Assessed nutrition education needs of 32,000 clients using nutritional trends collected by the state agency. Using this data, created annual nutrition education plan for the local agency by distributing and analyzing survey data per state policy• Facilitated quarterly training of 15 nutritionists to teach classes consisting of 15-20 participants per session according to the nutrition education plan resulting in improved quality of class presentations• Conducted and coordinated nutrition and breastfeeding outreach activities and presented WIC information to local community agencies that provide services to low-income families throughout Harris County

Houston, Texas Area

• Oversaw a clinic that provides health and nutrition services to 4,000 clients per month which entailed analyzing appointment time data to improve clinic efficiency, handling customer complaints, and ensuring customer satisfaction• Managed eight employees by determining initial and ongoing training needs, and evaluating work productivity • Certified applicants for program eligibility based on assessment of anthropometric, biochemical, clinical, and dietary information, following federal and state regulations, policies, and procedures• Counseled program participants in English and Spanish on basic nutritional needs during critical growth periods of pregnancy, post-partum period, infancy, and childhood

Houston, Texas

HCR Manorcare • Provided nutritional support and intervention to patients in two 120 bed long-term care facilities• Coordinated and led an interdisciplinary weight management team • Conducted foodservice kitchen inspections and monitored food safetyHarris Health System• Counseled adults and children of a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds at three outpatient clinics on nutrition topics• Coordinated with other members of the healthcare team to create the clinic’s first outpatient diabetes education class that included a registered dietitian• Assessed patient nutritional needs, implemented appropriate dietary interventions, aided in goal-setting, and tracked progress

Beaumont/Port Arthur, Texas Area

Beaumont/Port Arthur, Texas Area

- Eligible to take the registration examination for dietitians in June 2013- Completed 1200 clock hours in the areas of clinical, foodservice, community with an emphasis in nutrition education and counseling- Completed 336 hours in clinical nutrition with emphasis in long term care and general medicine- Completed 240 hours in community nutrition with emphasis in education presentations to various audiences ranging from low-income children to the elderly- Completed 352 hours in nutrition education and counseling with emphasis areas in diabetes education, outpatient renal, and private counseling- Translated between Spanish and English during rotations as needed

Lansing, Michigan Area

- Adapted and developed at-risk student health curriculum to best meet adolescent client needs - Facilitated and lead weekly health presentations for at-risk youth in an inner-city school district- Lead training-schedule-planning and development for new Health Advocates as well as provided mentoring and skill development supervision- Acted as a peer resource to students by answering questions and providing referrals

East Lansing, Mi

- Provided HIV counseling testing and referral services as a state-certified HIV/AIDS Prevention and Intervention (HAPIS) Counselor- Presented informational sessions and facilitated discussions for campus groups and college courses on human sexuality - Coordinated, researched, and implemented campus-wide World AIDS Day educational and awareness events- Received over 200 hours of training and supervision on topics such as sexual health, HIV/AIDS, nutrition, mental health, and wellness

Lansing, Michigan Area

- Conducted weekly home visits with pregnant and parenting teen moms and dads to connect families with community resources, health-related education, and support mechanisms - Assisted teens in securing WIC, child support, affordable housing, alternative education, and college admission- Coordinated and facilitated teens in finding work and training opportunities to become self sufficient- Provided transportation to appointments to ensure clients received access to medical professionals and WIC - Successfully charted progress notes and made written, e-mail, and phone call referrals to other health professionals for clients

Lansing, Michigan Area

- Facilitated and led several presentations on health-related topics for middle, high and alternative education schools as well as agencies in Ingham County - Completed 70 training hours on public health topics of nutrition, sexual health, relationships, and substance abuse- Created and designed presentation and community outreach materials for program

Master Of Business Administration (M.B.A.), Business Administration And Management, General

Activities and Societies: Women in business club

Master Of Science (M.S.), Family And Consumer Sciences With An Emphasis In Dietetics, 4.0

Activities and Societies: Kappa Omicron Nu honors society Graduate Association of Interns and Nutrition StudentsThesis titled "What is.

Bachelor Of Science (B.S.), Dietetics

Activities and Societies: Food and Nutrition Association Women's Rugby Football ClubMinor in Spanish language