Leadership

Barbara Kowalcyk, Ph.D., CEO and Director of Research

An internationally respected expert in food safety and foodborne illness, Barbara Kowalcyk serves as the CEO of CFI. A scientist by education and training, Kowalcyk sees CFI as a knowledge broker, bridging the gap between research and policy.

Kowalcyk also has faculty appointments at both N.C. State University, where she is an assistant research professor in the Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Epidemiology in the Gillings School of Public Health.

Kowalcyk serves on numerous government committees and was a co-author of the 2010 NAS report, Enhancing Safe Food: The Role of the Food and Drug Administration, which served as a blueprint for the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2010.

Kowalcyk’s personal story was featured in the 2009 Academy Award nominated documentary Food, Inc. And, her efforts to reform the food safety system have been recognized by Yoko Ono, who awarded Kowalcyk the 2010 Lennon Ono Grant for Peace, and by readers of the Huffington Post, who voted Kowalcyk a 2010 Ultimate Game Changer.

In addition to her extensive experience in food safety advocacy, Dr. Kowalcyk has more than 10 years experience as a biostatistician, conducting clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry.

She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Dayton in Mathematics and her Master’s in Applied Statistics from the University of Pittsburgh. In 2011, she earned her Doctorate in Environmental Health with a focus in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from the University of Cincinnati.

She and her family live outside Raleigh. (Read Kevin's Story)

Patricia Buck, Director of Outreach & Education

Ms. Buck became involved in foodborne illness prevention in 2001 following the death of her 2 ½ year old grandson, Kevin Kowalcyk, from complications due to an E. coli O157:H7 infection. Since then, Ms. Buck has volunteered extensively for food safety protections and food safety education. In 2006, she and Barbara Kowalcyk founded the Center for Foodborne Illness Research & Prevention. Ms. Buck has dedicated her time developing CFI’s Be Food Smart program, which includes CFI’s Six Safe Food Practices. Besides her work with CFI, Ms. Buck served on the Board of Directors for the Partnership for Food Safety Education (PFSE) from 2007-2010. Ms. Buck is a certified English and Reading teacher. She earned an M.S. in Education and a M.A. in English from Slippery Rock University. In 2004, she was awarded the “Outstanding Woman of the Year” by Pennsylvania’s Mercer County Commission for Women. She is the mother of five children and has ten grandchildren. She currently resides in Grove City, Pennsylvania with her husband.

CFI Board of Directors

Tanya Roberts, Ph.D., Chair, CFI Board of Directors
Tanya Roberts spent 30 years at the Economic Research Service, USDA before retiring as a senior economist in March 2008. Her research has focused on estimating the societal costs of foodborne illness, the public/private interface of food safety regulations, risk assessment, and the critical role of food safety information in both public and private decision making. Other research areas have included economic incentives for food safety and rapid pathogen testing. Dr. Roberts has numerous publications. She earned her Ph.D. in economics from the University of Washington in Seattle. She has been a member of the American Agricultural Economics Association, the American Society of Microbiologists, and the International Association of Food Protection and organized sessions for these associations as well as other conferences and professional meetings. Tanya currently resides in Vashon, Washington.

Ken Costello, MBA, Secretary, CFI Board of Directors
Ken Costello served in the United States Air Force from 1975 to 1995. At USAF, he served as an Air Force Advance Officer in support of Air Force One and earned a MBA at Embry-Riddle University. After retiring from USAF, he worked as a flight instructor, as well as a corporate and airline pilot at Boeing until 1998. In 1999, he became the Vice-President of Compliance for Conley Investment Counsel and served in that capacity until 2008. Currently, Ken volunteers for numerous community organizations. In 2006, Ken’s mother-in-law, Ruby Trautz, was sickened in the E. coli O157:H7-spinach outbreak and died. Ken was also sickened with the same strain of E. coli, but he recovered. Ken has two residences: one in Nebraska and one in Wyoming.

Patti Waller, M.S., Treasurer, CFI Board of Directors
Patti Waller is the senior epidemiologist at the law firm Marler Clark, L.L.P., P.S. Prior to entering the private sector, Ms. Waller was the lead foodborne epidemiologist at the Washington State Health Department, where she investigated foodborne illness outbreaks. She trained in cancer epidemiology and received her M.S. in epidemiology from the University of Washington. Ms. Waller has been published in scientific journals and has given numerous presentations about foodborne illness surveillance and outbreak investigations. She currently resides in Seattle, Washington.

Elizabeth Armstrong, B.S. CFI Board Director
Elizabeth Armstrong is a marketing consultant, with expertise in translating strategic plans into tactical deliverables. Ms. Armstrong earned a B.S. in Marketing and International Business from Kelley School of Business, Indianapolis IN. Her most recent employment has been with ROCHE Diagnostics, Indianapolis IN. In 2006, Elizabeth's two year old daughter, Ashley, became sickened with E. coli O157:H7 as a result of contaminated spinach. Ashley survived hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), but suffers serious long-term health complications, including kidney damage. (See Ashley’s Story for more details.) Elizabeth currently resides in Indianapolis, Indiana.

David Buck, Ph.D. CFI Board Director
David Buck is an Associate Professor at Thiel College in Greenville, Pennsylvania, teaching World and United States history, focusing on Human Rights and Developing World Issues. Dr. Buck incorporates food safety history into his courses, in particular when discussing historical periods involving social change movements. Dr. Buck earned a B.A. in American Studies from the University of Dayton; a M.A. in History from Slippery Rock University, and his Ph.D. in History from West Virginia University. Dr. Buck has also participated in programs at the East-West Center, Honolulu, Hawaii. He currently resides in Sharon, Pennsylvania.

Lee Faulconbridge, M.S. CFI Board Director
Lee Faulconbridge has been a Family & Consumer Science teacher at Lakeview School District, Sandy Lake, PA since 1982. In 2003, she was selected by the Pennsylvania Association of Family and Consumer Science as Pennsylvania’s Family & Consumer Science Teacher of the Year. Ms. Faulconbridge is a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania and earned a M.S. in Education from Villanova University. She currently resides in Grove City, Pennsylvania.

Michele Jay-Russell, DVM, Ph.D. CFI Board Director
Michele Jay-Russell is a veterinarian and a Food Safety and Security Specialist with the Western Institute for Food Safety and Security at UC Davis, Davis, CA. She has worked on the front-lines of public health for more than 14 years in both state and local government. Her research is focused on food safety and veterinary public health, with an emphasis on the molecular epidemiology of zoonotic foodborne pathogens. Dr. Jay-Russell was recognized for her outstanding contribution to the multi-agency team that investigated the 2006 E.coli 0157:H7 fresh spinach outbreak in the United States.

Jeffrey Moran, J.D. CFI Board Director
Jeffrey Moran spent 31 years as a litigation attorney before his retirement in 2005. Early in his career, he clerked for Judge Oliver Gasch of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Subsequently, Mr. Moran spent 17 years at Motorola and 11 years at Steptoe & Johnson. Mr. Moran earned both his undergraduate history degree and his law degree from Georgetown University. While in law school he served on the American Criminal Law Review and the Georgetown University Law Journal. He currently resides in Highland Park, Illinois.

Kathy Norback-Ley, B.S. CFI Board Director
Kathy Ley has worked for the past 16 years as a co-owner of Norback, Ley and Associates LLC providing software and services to the food industry with an emphasis on food safety applications. Ms. Ley and her husband, John Norback PhD, have developed software packages that provide fundamental information on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) planning, hazard identification, sanitation procedures, record keeping and preventive strategies. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point with a B.S. in mathematics and computer science. She currently resides in Middleton, Wisconsin.

Teresa Schwartz, J.D. CFI Board Director
Teresa Schwartz is the J.B. and Maurice C. Shapiro Professor Emeritus of Public Interest Law at George Washington University, Washington, D. C., and specializes in consumer law and products liability. In addition, Ms. Schwartz served as the Deputy Director of the Federal Trade Commissions’ Bureau of Consumer Protection from 1995-2001, and for nearly two decades, she has served on the Board of Directors for Consumer Reports. She is a member of the Bar of the District of Columbia where she currently resides.

Pete Smudde, Ph.D. CFI Board Director
Pete Smudde is accredited in public relations by the Public Relations Society of America. After 16 years in corporate public relations, he changed his career goals and entered academia. In 2000, Dr. Smudde earned his Ph.D. in Communications from Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, and he is currently employed at Illinois State University, School of Communication. In addition to his extensive publications, Dr. Smudde has been a consultant to a variety of organizations, has served in leadership positions for several professional organizations and has won awards for his writing, research and service. He currently resides in Bloomington, Illinois.