Patricia Marincic
The Department of Nutrition and Dietetics at Idaho State University will soon welcome home a familiar face. Patricia Z. Marincic has served as associate vice president for the Division of Health Sciences at Idaho State University and director of the ISU Meridian campus since 2017. She previously served ISU as program director of nutrition and dietetics from 1988-1998 and most recently on the faculty at Auburn University prior to her return to ISU in 2017. She will return to the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics as a tenured professor in January 2021.
Marincic has been nationally recognized within the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics with awards of excellence in teaching and research. She speaks nationally as an advocate for public policy initiatives to increase access to nutrition services for both insured and underrepresented populations. She established the first dietetic internship program in Idaho, allowing graduates to complete all requirements, in state, to become a registered dietitian nutritionist.
Marincic developed nutrition curricula across the health professions including nursing, dental hygiene, physician assistant studies and family medicine. She also participated in the development of the Master of Public Health program, adding a nutrition track.
Upon returning to ISU in 2017, Marincic assumed leadership of the Meridian campus. Programs that have been added or expanded during Marincic’s tenure include clinical psychopharmacology, clinical rehabilitation counseling, health informatics, homeland security and emergency management, physical therapy, nutrition and accelerated nursing.
Marincic has been an integral member of the Kasiska Division of Health Science’s leadership team. She has participated in regional initiatives to increase clinical training capacity; championed interprofessional education for ISU students in collaboration with the Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine; supported the work of ISU’s collaborative post-doctoral fellowship with St. Luke’s Health System, served on the Saint Alphonsus Mission Committee, and other agencies. Additionally, Marincic helped to refine the mission of the Idaho Center for Health Research.
In her new role, Marincic is looking forward to focusing her time on nutrition and the education of dietitians and nutritionists. Marincic also looks forward to delving back into her own research exploring the efficacy of nutrition interventions for the treatment and prevention of diabetes and other chronic disease and state and national advocacy within the academy.
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