Navika Gangrade

Navika Gangrade, PhD, RDN, is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Nutrition and Food Studies at New York University's Steinhardt School. She holds a PhD in Nutrition from Cornell University and a BS in Dietetics from the University of Delaware. Her work focuses on enhancing diversity in the dietetics workforce through mentorship interventions and addressing health inequities via community-based interventions.

Dr. Gangrade's research emphasizes improving retention of underrepresented trainees in dietetics, leveraging her expertise in intervention research and teaching. She has conducted doctoral work on empowering adolescents from marginalized communities to address dietary behaviors and environmental factors contributing to poor nutrition. Prior to NYU, she completed a postdoctoral fellowship at SUNY Downstate supported by the NIMHD-funded TRANSPORT grant.

As a practicing Registered Dietitian, she specializes in counseling clients recovering from eating disorders. Her interdisciplinary approach combines nutritional science, education, and advocacy to combat systemic inequities in nutrition access and workforce diversity.