Meet Rosalyne Tu

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Rosalyne Tu, MS, RD has traveled an educational and vocational path which defines her skills and experience as a Dietitian and Wellness Advisor for the BeWell Program.

After earning her BS in Nutritional Science (UC Berkeley) and completing her dietetic internship (Penn State), Rosalyne began her career eight years ago as a clinical dietitian working in hospitals and outpatient services. Having worked with a majority of patients with diabetes, heart, liver and kidney disease, she knew that the next step in her career should be in prevention because she believed in the value of keeping people healthy. During her experience in the clinical setting, Rosalyne quickly realized that telling people what they should do just wasn’t enough to help them change their behaviors. Knowing that she was destined to work in wellness and prevention, and recognizing the need to develop her skills in counseling and behavior change, Rosalyne went back to school and earned her MS in Nutrition and Applied Physiology from Columbia University.

Subsequently, Rosalyne worked for the Department of Health and the Obesity Research Center in New York City. At the DOH, she focused on collecting and analyzing data which monitored the effectiveness of the Calorie Initiative (the law requiring chain restaurants to post calorie information on their menu boards). At the Obesity Research Center, Rosalyne researched the effects of discounted fruits and vegetables on purchasing and consumption of supermarket shoppers. Data from this study was intended to influence nutrition policy relating to food subsidies provided by the government.

After experiencing a few years of humid, sticky summers and artic cold winters, Rosalyne came back west to continue her passions in wellness, public health and policy. She currently works for Stanford’s BeWell program: in addition to advising BeWell participants, she teaches HIP cooking classes with two of her co-workers. Rosalyne feels blessed and honored to have the opportunity to engage with so many of Stanford’s employees through the BeWell program. “People are doing great things for their health despite the uphill journey; there is much to admire in this population. I learn from them every day,” says Rosalyne when asked about her job.

When not working at Stanford, Rosalyne works at the Santa Clara Public Health Department for the Childhood Feeding Collaborative, an obesity prevention program focused on educating families and pediatricians on best practices in feeding guidance for kids 0-6 years of age. Rosalyne was also part of the reviewing committee for the recent Nutritional Standards passed in Santa Clara County.

Before she was a wellness advisor to others, she was an advisor to herself. While growing up, physical activity was not emphasized in her family. She never especially enjoyed exercise or felt particularly “good” at it. Over the past decade, she slowly incorporated more and more physical activity into her life, and through that, found a new passion — running. Rosalyne now loves running and exploring new trails, new cities, and new countries on foot. She is also attempting “urban gardening” on her patio and at her community garden plot.