After watching a news story about homelessness as a child, Dr. Rickelle Richards made a promise to herself: when she grew up, she would become successful and build homes for those in need. Now a professor in BYU’s Department of Nutrition, Dietetics, and Food Science, Richards honors that promise—not with bricks and mortar but through research and advocacy. “Sometimes people who need a voice don’t get a voice,” says Richards. “To be that person who can do this research and be a voice to improve things is a really rewarding experience.” Her work sheds light on challenges faced by underserved communities, offering practical solutions and hope where it is needed most.
Cooking Up a Project
When a grant opportunity arose through the Community Foundation of Utah, Richards saw a chance to expand her work with individuals experiencing homelessness. Richards and her colleague Dr. James LeCheminant, an expert in wellness program development, collaborated with Utah State University (USU) Extension—a program that offers research-based resources to support Utah individuals, families, and communities as they transition to permanent housing. Together, they started formulating the project. “I saw a way to do some good, a way to affect a group of people that are hard to research,” LeCheminant recalls, reflecting on his decision to get involved. With funding secured, Richards and her team took their community nutrition efforts a step further by providing in-depth education and support to residents in transitional housing, sharing knowledge and encouraging residents on their path to stability.
Before launching the intervention, Richards and her team from BYU and USU Extension conducted surveys and interviews to assess residents’ health, habits, and access to essential resources. This helped the team tailor the program to the specific needs of transitional housing residents and reflect the realities of the community. “Sometimes environmental policies prevent residents from being able to make healthy choices,” Richards explains. “If we can modify that in a way that is reasonable within the structure where they are at, then hopefully that can lead to positive health outcomes.”
To create lasting change, Richards and her team launched a wellness intervention that incorporated the results they’d collected to provide better nutrition and physical activity education to Provo residents in transitional housing. In partnership with USU Extension and the Food and Care Coalition, BYU students and faculty delivered hands-on education aimed at helping residents develop healthier habits. These efforts empowered participants in their preparation for permanent housing.
With a research focus on community nutrition in low-income populations, Richards and her team played a pivotal role in shaping the initiative. Her strong community connections enabled students to collaborate with leaders like Brent Crane, executive director of the Food and Care Coalition. It was Crane who invited Richards and USU Extension to partner together to deliver nutrition education classes through the Coalition. Over the course of the eight-week program, the team taught lessons on nutrition and physical activity using the adapted version of the SNAP-Ed curriculum. Following the course, they also collected follow-up data to evaluate changes and measure the program’s impact.
Recognizing that residents have limited access to traditional grocery stores, Richards and her team introduced strategies for purchasing nutritious foods at nearby convenience and dollar stores. The meal planning lesson was revised from a month-long framework to a more practical one-week plan, accommodating shared storage spaces. Additionally, microwave-friendly recipe demonstrations using dollar store ingredients were added to address the minimal cooking equipment available.
BYU student interns helped facilitate the classes, giving students valuable hands-on experience while equipping residents with practical tools for healthier living. For Kyle Lyman (PWS ’26), the experience was transformative. After meeting Richards through a class presentation, Lyman joined the project and quickly began gaining valuable insights that extended far beyond the classroom. “Everyone has a place in the community,” he reflects, recalling how the experience deepened his understanding of compassion. It taught him that a person’s story cannot be judged by appearances alone and that genuine connection begins with empathy.
Growing Through the Love of God
The transitional housing project provided BYU students and faculty a meaningful opportunity to serve and witness the real-world impact of their efforts. For Callie Millward (MS ’24, NDFS), the project reinforced her belief that health and nutrition should be accessible to everyone. She emphasized that while there is no perfect approach, “small steps can make some pretty big changes in people’s lives.” Through her involvement, Millward discovered that building relationships is central, not only to community health but also to faith. “There’s no better way to get to know our heavenly parents than by getting to know their kids,” she shares. Connecting with residents on a personal level deepened her understanding of both Deity and those around her, strengthening her sense of purpose and compassion.
As students shared their experiences with transitional housing residents, Richards was reminded of her own early encounters with the homeless community. “Hearing the students have that same experience reminded me of what I experienced before and how my vision was opened to thinking about compassion,” she explains. Similarly, for LeCheminant, watching the students grow was deeply rewarding. He believes they gained a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by this population. “That perspective creates a more grateful attitude, and I definitely saw that with our students,” he shares.
Looking ahead, Richards and her team hope to expand the program to other nonprofit organizations across the country. By sharing the student-developed model with transitional housing facilities nationwide, they aim to broaden the reach of their work—bringing knowledge, compassion, and hope to more communities in need.