Valerie Ryan (she/her)


Assistant Professor College of Food Innovation & Technology Interdisciplinary Food Studies Providence

Biography and Expertise

Valerie Ryan is an Assistant Professor in the Culinary Science and Product Development program at Johnson & Wales University. Before joining JWU, she taught food science and sensory studies at Boston University. She brings extensive industry experience in food ingredient research and development, culinary applications, and sensory evaluation.

Prior to working in industry, she developed and tested military rations at the U.S. Army Natick Labs. Early in her career, she gained laboratory experience in nutritional biochemistry research at the USDA. She also wrote a column on food science and nutrition for The Boston Globe.

Ryan holds a master’s degree in Food Studies and a certificate in Culinary Arts from Boston University, where she trained under Jacques Pépin, Jean-Claude Szurdak, Mary Ann Esposito, Jim Dodge, Ana Sortun, and other renowned chefs. She earned a certificate in Sensory and Consumer Science from the University of California, Davis.

Education

Master of Liberal Arts
Boston University

Certification in Culinary Arts
Boston University

BS
Framingham State University

Certificate in Applied Sensory and Consumer Sciences
University of California, Davis

Universal Design for Learning Certification
Johnson & Wales Center for Teaching and Learning

Academic Integrity Certification
JWU Office of Community Standards and Conduct

QPR Gatekeeper Certification
JWU Bridge and Counseling Services

The Cheese Certificate Program
Boston University

Certified Food Safety Manager (Recertification)
National Registry of Food Safety Professionals

Certification in Culinary Arts
Boston University

Julia Child Award for Academic Excellence
Boston University

The Agony and the Ecstasy of Food Pairing (Magazine)
Culture Cheese Magazine
April 19, 2021
https://culturecheesemag.com/cheese-pairings/food-pairing-rules/

How to acquire a taste for foods (Newspaper)
Boston Globe
September 24, 2019
https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/food-dining/2019/09/23/how-acquire-taste-for-foods/WvqY7QoOkWFTgbYCDipa3J/story.html

Association for the Study of Food and Society

Institute of Food Technologists

Research Chef’s Association

Ryan, V.
Review of Mouthfeel: How Texture Makes Taste
Winterthur Portfolio: A Journal of American Material Culture
53
2-3
194-195

Ryan, V.
Umami and Glutamates
Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Ryan, V.
Beverage Industries
Sage Publications, Inc.
1
117-121

Understanding and Incorporating Universal Design for Learning in the Classroom
Panel Presentation
University Scholarship & Best Practices Expo
Johnson & Wales University
Providence

Teaching Sensory Evaluation Under Pandemic Constraints – Food Pedagogies During and After the Pandemic
Panel Presentation
Just Food: Because it is never Just Food
Joint Annual Conference – Association for the Study of Food and Society; Agriculture, Food & Human Values Society, Canadian Association for Food Studies, The Society for the Anthropology of Food and Nutrition
NYU/Virtual Conference