About Us

About Us


Pediatric Subunit Leadership


Rachel Hill, RD, CSO, LD, CNSC

Rachel is a Clinical Dietitian at Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth, TX. She specializes in the acute care of pediatric oncology patients (including leukemia, lymphoma, brain, and other solid tumors). Her areas of interest include: nutrition support, proactive nutrition intervention (for malnutrition and obesity), vitamin D, and management of nutrition-related toxicities of childhood cancer treatment. She has worked with her team to develop a proactive obesity prevention program for children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a nutrition screening tool for outpatients, a proactive nutrition support decision aid for neuro-oncology patients, and a hyperglycemia screening tool for children with leukemia/lymphoma. She received her Bachelor of Science in Nutritional Sciences from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, LA and completed her internship at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, TX.
Contact Rachel: Rachel.Hill@Cookchildrens.org 

Karen Ringwald-Smith, MS, RD, LDN, FAND

Karen currently works at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital as the Nutrition Lab/Project Manager.  She has been at St. Jude since 1990 and has worked with many research and medical teams striving to optimize the medical nutrition therapy provided and improve health outcomes.  Karen is actively conducting several research and evidence-based studies.  Her core research team consists of four graduate students from the University of Memphis and three undergraduate student assistants employed by St. Jude.  In addition to her research, of which she is the primary investigator, she also assists the dietitians in the department with their research efforts.  Karen enjoys program development and providing education to the St. Jude family, which includes staff, patients, and caregivers.  She is currently managing several pediatric oncology education programs including "Delish Nutrish” cooking classes for patients and their families.  Annually, she develops campus-wide nutrition activities including National Nutrition Month, Kids Eat Right Month, and Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.  Karen is adjunct faculty at the University of Memphis and Southwest Tennessee Community College teaching nutrition classes.  

Contact Karen: Karen.Smith@StJude.org

Page updated: June 2022