Topic: Eating Disorders
Michelle Tollefson
Michelle Tollefson is a physician and associate professor in the Health Professions Department at Metropolitan State University of Denver. She teaches in the Integrative Therapies program and is the current secretary of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.
Tollefson worked as a private practice obstetrician and gynecologist, until leaving to work with Poudre Valley Health System as a medical director and director of Women’s Wellness Education. She is a certified wellcoach, guest faculty for Harvard and author of online continuing medical education for the Harvard Institute of Lifestyle Medicine. She is passionate about women’s healthcare, lifestyle medicine and teaching people to lead healthier and happier lives.
Tollefson is a graduate of Creighton University, where she received her Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Medicine degrees. She completed her obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Missouri in Kansas City and received her board certification in this medical specialty.
Elisa Fadum-Montoya
Elisa Fadum-Montoya, MSW, is an adjunct faculty in the Department of Social Work at Metropolitan State University of Denver.
Cynthia Dormer
Cynthia Dormer, Ph.D., R.D., is a professor in the Department of Nutrition at Metropolitan State University of Denver. Her areas of expertise include nutrition education, nutrition counseling, online and classroom course design, basic nutrition, and health promotion. She teaches Body Image: Concepts & Approach and Nutrition Education & Counsel. Her career is focused on weight-inclusive approaches, weight management, body image, nutrition, goal-setting, wellness, and college- student success.
In addition to teaching, Dormer is a registered dietitian nutritionist and the president of Brightside Co. Inc. She is the author of publications such as “Effects of College Classroom Goal-Setting Activities on Autonomous Motivation, Competence, Relatedness, and Achievement of Goals” and “Developing Technologies to Support People to Develop Healthy Eating Routines,” both featured in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Before joining MSU Denver, Dormer served as an assistant scientist at the AMC Cancer Research Center.
Dormer earned a doctorate in Philosophy with a focus in Human Nutrition from Colorado State University.
Micah Battson
Micah Battson, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Department of Nutrition at Metropolitan State University of Denver. His areas of expertise include the impact of dietary patterns and individual nutrients on health and disease, aging, obesity, diabetes, gut microbiome, metabolism, and cardiovascular disease. Battson teaches Introduction to Nutrition; Macronutrients in Health and Disease; and Vitamins, Minerals, and Bioactive Compounds in Health and Disease.
He was an affiliate professor at MSU Denver before becoming an associate professor last fall. Before coming to MSU Denver, Battson worked as the vice president for research fellow at Colorado State University. He was also a lead graduate teacher and a graduate research assistant at the University of Colorado Boulder.
His doctorate research at CSU focused on the interaction among diet, the gut microbiome, and cardiovascular physiology in the setting of obesity and Type 2 diabetes.
Battson received his doctorate in Food Science and Human Nutrition from CSU in 2018, a master’s in Integrative Physiology from CU Boulder in 2014, and a bachelor’s in Biochemistry magna cum laude from the University of California Los Angeles in 2010.