Food and exercise is to enhance our lives, not add more stress.

These were words to live by for Karen Kavanaugh-Miller, who devoted her professional life to helping people live healthier, happier lives. The past president of the Nebraska Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics spent 22 years as a registered dietitian at UNL. She died in March 2014 of pancreatic cancer.

To honor her legacy, her family has established the Karen S. Kavanaugh-Miller Memorial Fellowship for graduate students in the Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences, part of UNL’s College of Education and Human Sciences. Students must be participants in the UNL Dietetics Internship Program. Preference is given to students who are employed by, volunteer or are active participants in any UNL Campus Recreation wellness and fitness program.

The first recipient of the Karen S. Kavanaugh-Miller Memorial Fellowship is Amanda Robine of Omaha. Robine is a 2013 CEHS graduate.

“The focus of Karen’s fellowship is on students who have a passion for both dietetics and wellness,” said Tim Carr, chair of the Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences. “Karen was responsible for helping develop the wellness program at Campus Recreation, so the fellowship is a wonderful legacy to her and the contributions she made to health and well-being.”

For 17 years, Kavanaugh-Miller served a split appointment with the University Health Center and Campus Rec, but in more recent years was devoted full-time to working with Campus Rec clients on nutrition and wellness strategies.

“This fellowship is a wonderful reflection of Karen’s passion for serving as a mentor to students and always doing everything she could to support them toward achieving their personal and professional goals,” said Linda Young, a former professor of Kavanaugh-Miller and her longtime colleague and friend.

Kavanaugh-Miller earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at UNL and completed the dietetic internship program. In addition to being a registered dietitian she was also a licensed medical nutrition therapist, a certified personal trainer; WellCoaches certified health, fitness, wellness coach and held a certificate in adult weight management through the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

Additional gifts to the fellowship are being accepted through the University of Nebraska Foundation. For more information, contact Jane Heany at jheany@nufoundation.org or 402-458-1177.