October 2-5, 2004
Anaheim Convention Center
Anaheim, Calif.
Press Room: Room 203AB
Phone: 714/765-2031
(Please do not publish these numbers)

CHICAGO - Harriet Holt Cloud, a Birmingham, Ala., registered dietitian and professor emeritus of nutrition sciences at the University of Alabama, has been named the 2004 recipient of the American Dietetic Association’s highest honor, the Marjorie Hulsizer Copher Award.

During a distinguished career spanning seven decades, Cloud has specialized in the nutritional needs of children with developmental disabilities, both in health-care settings and in schools.

Cloud will receive the Copher Award October 2 at ADA’s Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo in Anaheim, Calif. Thousands of the nation’s top nutrition researchers, dietetics professionals and industry leaders will attend ADA’s meeting October 2-5.

The Marjorie Hulsizer Copher Award, named for an early 20th-century pioneer in the field of dietetics, is given annually to an American Dietetic Association member in recognition of career achievements and contributions to ADA and the dietetics profession.

Cloud began her career at Johns Hopkins Hospital and at Carraway Methodist Hospital in Birmingham after World War II. She worked at hospitals, medical centers and nursing homes, and for 10 years was a nutrition consultant for the Jefferson County (Ala.) Health Department.

Cloud joined the UAB faculty in 1976, retiring in 1992. From 1968 until 1991, Cloud was director of UAB’s Sparks Center for Developmental and Learning Disorders. The UAB School of Health Related Profession’s annual award to an outstanding graduate student focusing on pediatric nutrition research is named for Cloud.

In 1993, she published a DVD and workbook titled Feeding: A Priority for Dietetics Professionals. Since 1998, Cloud has operated her own nutrition consulting firm, Nutrition Matters.

Cloud was the lead author of ADA’s official position statement, adopted in early 2004, on “Providing nutrition services for infants, children and adults with developmental disabilities and special health care needs.”

Cloud’s contributions to the American Dietetic Association include serving on the Board of Directors and in the House of Delegates. She was a member of the Honors, Fiscal Affairs, Nominating, Program Planning and Professional Standards Review committees, among others. Cloud has chaired ADA’s Pediatric Nutrition practice group and now serves as a site visitor for ADA’s Commission on Accreditation of Education. Cloud is a past-president of the Alabama Dietetic Association.

Cloud previously won the ADA Foundation Award for Excellence in Clinical Practice (1986), ADA’s Medallion Award for outstanding service to the Association and the dietetics profession (1989) and the Pediatric Nutrition dietetic practice group’s Outstanding Member Award (2001).

Cloud is a graduate of Kansas State University. She earned a master’s degree in nutrition from the University of Alabama - Tuscaloosa.

With nearly 70,000 members, the Chicago-based American Dietetic Association is the nation’s largest organization of food and nutrition professionals. ADA serves the public by promoting optimal nutrition, health and well-being. Visit ADA at www.eatright.org.