Strong, Dorothy Hussemann (1908-1988)

Dorothy Hussemann Strong

Dorothy Hussemann Strong developed an interest in food preparation when as a small child she stood on a kitchen chair and watched her mother cook. After earning a BS in Dietetics in 1928 and an MS in Nutrition in 1929 from the University of Illinois, she put aside her plans to become a dietitian in a hospital in order to do research in foods and nutrition. She was appointed instructor in Foods and Nutrition at UW in 1930, and after some additional graduate work at the UW and Oregon State University, she earned her PhD in Bacteriology from the UW in 1946. For the last seventeen years of her career at UW, which ended with her retirement in 1968, Strong served as chair of the Foods and Nutrition Department.

Strong was particularly known for her extensive research and publications relating to food-borne illnesses, and in 1970 she received the Borden Award, one of the highest honors awarded in nutrition research.