Stories

Carolina Espinosa (Left), Program Director of SNAP-Ed, and Rachel Gill (Right), Program Director, Community Health Programs, BronxWorks

Carolina Espinosa became the Program Director of the BronxWorks SNAP-Ed Program in Februrary 2020. Carolina earned her Bachelor's degree and Master's degree in Science and Nutrition at Rutgers University and then completed her dietetic internship at James J. Peters VA Hospital, becoming a Registered Dietitian in 2015. She first joined BronxWorks in 2016 where she was a part of the HLMH team. Carolina spent 3 years implementing and expanding the BronxWorks-led collaboration and was integral in securing external partners. She also organized outreach events and promoted national diabetes awareness. Carolina then spent a year as the Nutritionist with the Positive Living Department, providing nutrition and health consultation to clients living with HIV/AIDS, before returning to the Community Health Programs as the Program Director of SNAP-Education.

"There is so much to be proud of. I am proud of the great team we've assembled that has adapted to the challenges and that allows us to consistently provide quality programming to all of our different patrons." - Carolina Espinosa

In her free time, Carolina enjoys hiking, traveling, photography, and exploring new surroundings. She is passionate about animal rescue and volunteers with feral cat catch, neuter, and release groups. She is also passionate about food in her personal life and loves to cook and help others with their nutrition journeys as well.

Rachel completed her Bachelor's degree in journalism at Salve Regina University and worked in her home state of Vermont in various food industry initiatives. She came to New York City to pursue a Master's at the NYU Food Studies Program and joined BronxWorks in 2014. Rachel started her time with BronxWorks at the senior-operated farm stand at the Heights Neighborhood Senior Center. Shortly after, she assumed the role of the Administrative Assistant supporting the operations of the CMCC Kitchen, which provides daily meals for multiple BronxWorks programs and hundred of participants. She slowly integrated into several other community health programs. Rachel is now the Program Director of Community Health Programs, where she oversees the CMCC and Adult Homeless Services Kitchens, Infant and Maternal Health initiatives, Food Nutrition Service Bundle program, Teen Battle Chef, Nutrition Education Capacity Building program, and a partnership with Citibike/Lyft to promote the bike-sharing model in the Bronx.

"My goals are to continue to show up and stand with the Bronx community to advocate for change and increased equity in all regards. I hope to continue to expand health, nutrition, and food service programming to serve the community." - Rachel Gill

Rachel spends her time outside of work swimming, kayaking and singing with a pop choir. Rachel is also passionate about food culture in her personal life and loves to go on food adventures where she is able to try out new dishes and cuisines. Together, Rachel and Carolina have over a decade of experience providing strong leadership around food education and nutrition services to the Bronx and are a tour de force when it comes to food access and resources for the communities that we serve.

Previous BronxWorks Stories

#83 Staff Profile: Carolina Espinosa & Rachel Gill

#82 Staff Profile: Andrew Lin

#81 Staff Profile: Sarah Kimball

#80 Staff Profile: Natalie Villanueva

#79: 2020 25 & 20-Year Staff Recognition

#78 Staff Profile: Devin Duran

#77 Staff Profile: Rachel Onijoko

#76 Staff Profile: Dominique Jackson

#75 Staff Profile: Phillipa Quan

#74 Staff Profile: Tiffanie Dorch

#73 Staff Profile: Rasheed Brown