WHO WE ARE

CFI is currently a volunteer-based organization with an active Board of Directors that includes individuals with a broad range of expertise related to food safety. For more information on how to become involved in CFI, please e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Patricia Buck, Executive Director.

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Ms. Buck became involved in foodborne illness prevention in 2001 following the death of her 2 ½ year old grandson, Kevin Kowalcyk, from complications due to an E. coli O157:H7 infection. Since then, Ms. Buck has volunteered extensively for food safety protections and food safety education. In 2006, she and Barbara Kowalcyk founded the Center for Foodborne Illness Research & Prevention. Ms. Buck has dedicated her time developing CFI’s Be Food Smart program, which includes CFI’s Six Safe Food Practices.  Besides her work with CFI, Ms. Buck served on the Board of Directors for the Partnership for Food Safety Education (PFSE) from 2007-2010. Ms. Buck is a certified English and Reading teacher. She earned a M.S. in Education and a M.A. in English from Slippery Rock University. In 2004, she was awarded the “Outstanding Woman of the Year” by Pennsylvania’s Mercer County Commission for Women. She is the mother of five children and has ten grandchildren. She currently resides in Grove City, Pennsylvania with her husband.

Barbara Kowalcyk, Director of Food Safety.
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Ms. Kowalcyk became involved in foodborne illness prevention in 2001 following the death of her 2 ½ year old son, Kevin, from complications due to an E. coli O157:H7 infection. Ms. Kowalcyk has volunteered extensively as a consumer advocate for food safety and co-founded the Center for Foodborne Illness Research & Prevention in 2006. In addition, Ms. Kowalcyk has served on USDA’s National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) from 2005 - 2009. She currently serves on the Advisory Board for Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute’s Produce Safety Project, as well as two National Academies of Science committees. Ms. Kowalcyk has given numerous presentations on food safety at national conferences and food safety forums. In 2008, she participated in the filming of the documentary Food Inc., a film that examines food production in America. . In addition to her extensive experience in food safety advocacy, Ms. Kowalcyk has over 10 years experience as a biostatistician conducting clinical research in the pharmaceutical industry. Ms. Kowalcyk earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Dayton in Mathematics and her Master’s in Applied Statistics from the University of Pittsburgh. Ms. Kowalcyk is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Environmental Health with a focus in Epidemiology/Biostatistics at the University of Cincinnati. Currently, she is a fellow in UC’s Molecular Epidemiology in Children’s Environmental Health Training Program. She resides in Maineville, Ohio with her husband and three surviving children. (Read Kevin's Story)

CFI Board of Directors

Tanya Roberts, Ph.D., Chair CFI Board of Directors
Tanya Roberts spent 30 years at the Economic Research Service, USDA before retiring as a senior economist in March 2008. Her research has focused on estimating the societal costs of foodborne illness, the public/private interface of food safety regulations, risk assessment, and the critical role of food safety information in both public and private decision making. Other research areas have included economic incentives for food safety and rapid pathogen testing. Dr. Roberts has numerous publications. She earned her Ph.D. in economics from the University of Washington in Seattle. She has been a member of the American Agricultural Economics Association, the American Society of Microbiologists, and the International Association of Food Protection and organized sessions for these associations as well as other conferences and professional meetings. Tanya currently resides in Vashon, Washington.

David Buck, Ph.D., Secretary, CFI Board of Directors
David Buck is an Associate Professor at Thiel College in Greenville, Pennsylvania, teaching World and United States history, focusing on Human Rights and Developing World Issues. Dr. Buck incorporates food safety history into his courses, in particular when discussing historical periods involving social change movements. Dr. Buck earned a B.A. in American Studies from the University of Dayton; a M.A. in History from Slippery Rock University, and his Ph.D. in History from West Virginia University. Dr. Buck has also participated in programs at the East-West Center, Honolulu, Hawaii. He currently resides in Sharon, Pennsylvania.

Lee Faulconbridge, M.S., Treasurer, CFI Board of Directors
Lee Faulconbridge has been a Family & Consumer Science teacher at Lakeview School District, Sandy Lake, PA since 1982. In 2003, she was selected by the Pennsylvania Association of Family and Consumer Science as Pennsylvania’s Family & Consumer Science Teacher of the Year. Ms. Faulconbridge is a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania and earned a M.S. in Education from Villanova University. She currently resides in Grove City, Pennsylvania.

Elizabeth Armstrong, B.S. CFI Board Director
Elizabeth Armstrong is a marketing consultant, with expertise in translating strategic plans into tactical deliverables. Ms. Armstrong earned a B.S. in Marketing and International Business from Kelley School of Business, Indianapolis IN. Her most recent employment has been with ROCHE Diagnostics, Indianapolis IN. In 2006, Elizabeth's two year old daughter, Ashley, became sickened with E. coli O157:H7 as a result of contaminated spinach. Ashley survived hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), but suffers serious long-term health complications, including kidney damage. (See Ashley’s Story for more details.) Elizabeth currently resides in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Ken Costello, Retired Pilot for United States Air Force, CFI Board Director
Ken Costello served in the United States Air Force from 1975 to 1995. At USAF, he served as an Air Force Advance Officer in support of Air Force One and earned a MBA at Embry-Riddle University. After retiring from USAF, he worked as a flight instructor, as well as a corporate and airline pilot at Boeing until 1998. In 1999, he became the Vice-President of Compliance for Conley Investment Counsel and served in that capacity until 2008. Currently, Ken volunteers for numerous community organizations. In 2006, Ken’s mother-in-law, Ruby Trautz, was sickened in the E. coli O157:H7-spinach outbreak and died. Ken was also sickened with the same strain of E. coli, but he recovered. Ken has two residences: one in Nebraska and one in Wyoming.

Kevin Elfering, B.S. CFI Board Director
Kevin Elfering has worked in food production and food safety for over 35 years. He began his career as a diary/meat processor, but in 1980 he became involved in inspection and regulatory affairs for the State of Minnesota. He retired from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture in 2007 and currently he is adjunct faculty for the University of Minnesota. Mr. Elfering has been published in several scientific journals and has given numerous presentations. He has also served on two national advisory boards (USDA’s NACMPI and USDA/FDA’s National Egg Safety Advisory) and has held officer positions for the National Association of State Meat and Food Inspection Directors and the National Association of Egg Regulatory Officials. He currently resides in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.

Rebecca Hohlstein, M.S. CFI Board Director
Rebecca Hohlstein is a food scientist/bacteriologist with over 20 years experience in food safety. She has taught industrial and medical microbiology and is a Certified Lead Instructor for Hazard Analysis/Critical Control Points (HACCP), the food industry’s mandatory program to assure safe processing. She earned a M.S. in bacteriology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and she is the author of Food Fight: The People’s Guide to Food Safety in a Dangerous World, which provides a comprehensive review of foodborne illnesses, along with possible preventive strategies. Currently, Ms. Hohlstein is Technical Affairs Manager for DSM Food Specialties, a company that specializes in food ingredients and nutritional products. She currently resides in Madison, Wisconsin.

Jeffrey Moran, J.D. CFI Board Director
Jeffrey Moran spent 31 years as a litigation attorney before his retirement in 2005. Early in his career, he clerked for Judge Oliver Gasch of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Subsequently, Mr. Moran spent 17 years at Motorola and 11 years at Steptoe & Johnson. Mr. Moran earned both his undergraduate history degree and his law degree from Georgetown University. While in law school he served on the American Criminal Law Review and the Georgetown University Law Journal. He currently resides in Highland Park, Illinois.

Kathy Norback-Ley, B.S. CFI Board Director
Kathy Ley has worked for the past 16 years as a co-owner of Norback, Ley and Associates LLC providing software and services to the food industry with an emphasis on food safety applications. Ms. Ley and her husband, John Norback PhD, have developed software packages that provide fundamental information on Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) planning, hazard identification, sanitation procedures, record keeping and preventive strategies. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point with a B.S. in mathematics and computer science. She currently resides in Middleton, Wisconsin.

Arun Sawardekar, M.D. CFI Board Director
Arun Sawardekar is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and has been practicing medicine for the past 30 years at Sawardekar Pediatrics Associates in Grove City, Pennsylvania. He studied medicine at Kasturba Medical School, India. He interned at Rutgers Medical School and did his residency at King’s County Hospital, Brooklyn, New York. Dr. Sawardekar is an active member of the Pennsylvania Medical Society and is a past-president for the Mercer County (Pennsylvania) Medical Society. He currently resides in Grove City, Pennsylvania.

Pete Smudde, Ph.D. CFI Board Director
Pete Smudde is accredited in public relations by the Public Relations Society of America. After 16 years in corporate public relations, he changed his career goals and entered academia. In 2000, Dr. Smudde earned his Ph.D. in Communications from Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, and he is currently employed at Illinois State University, School of Communication. In addition to his extensive publications, Dr. Smudde has been a consultant to a variety of organizations, has served in leadership positions for several professional organizations and has won awards for his writing, research and service. He currently resides in Bloomington, Illinois.

Patti Waller, M.S. CFI Board Director
Patti Waller is the senior epidemiologist at the law firm Marler Clark, L.L.P., P.S.. Prior to entering the private sector, Ms. Waller was the lead foodborne epidemiologist at the Washington State Health Department, where she investigated foodborne illness outbreaks. She trained in cancer epidemiology and received her M.S. in epidemiology from the University of Washington. Ms. Waller has been published in scientific journals and has given numerous presentations about foodborne illness surveillance and outbreak investigations. She currently resides in Seattle, Washington.