Sudha Raj, an Indian American professor at the Falk College of Sport at Syracuse University, has received the 2025 Medallion Award from for her groundbreaking contributions to the field of nutrition and dietetics.
Raj, who is known worldwide for her studies to investigate dietary acculturation patterns of Asian Indian immigrants in the United States, was presented the award at an honors breakfast Oct. 12 during the Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo in Nashville, Tennessee, according to a university release.
“Sudha has an inquiring mind and has mentored thousands of students to carry that quest for inquiry, but also cultivated a culture of integrity, purpose and shared commitment to advancing the profession,” says Harlivleen “Livleen” Gill, who served as the 2024-25 president of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
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“Beyond her research and education, Dr Raj is known for her warmth, compassion and genuine connection with her colleagues and students.”
Raj says she was excited to receive the Medallion Award and mingle with the five other award recipients from around the country. But she sees the honor as a “team effort” because of the support she has received from her colleagues over the years.
“In the nutrition department we have the best colleagues to work with,” Raj says, “and a lot of things happened here (at Syracuse) through the Academy’s initiatives because my colleagues saw value in it.”
Growing up in India, Raj’s childhood dream was to become a physician. But there was one problem: She didn’t like the sight of blood.
Thanks to the influence of her parents and a friendly neighbor, Raj discovered a different way to help people by focusing her career on nutrition science and dietetics.
She moved to Syracuse in 1981 to enroll at the University, and while she never left Syracuse, she has made an enormous impact around the globe.
Raj has served in leadership roles with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the world’s largest organization of food and nutrition professionals.
She’s also an award-winning teaching professor and researcher in the Department of Nutrition and Food Studies in the Falk College of Sport.
Nutrition and Food Studies Associate Professor Kay Stearns Bruening says Raj is the first faculty member to receive a national award of this stature since the legendary Sarah “Sally” Short in the early 1990s.
Nutrition and Food Studies Associate Professor Lynn Brann says Raj has brought her expertise in multiple areas to the department through new course development and her dedicated mentoring of undergraduate and graduate students.