What does the USDA have to do with nursing?

Access to nutritious food, safe housing, transportation, rural infrastructure, education, and economic opportunity can shape health long before a patient enters a hospital or clinic. For Tarnia Newton, DNP, APRN, FNP-C, a recent national fellowship offered a new perspective on how federal programs and policies influence those conditions and how nurses can apply that knowledge to advocate for healthier patients, families, and communities.

For Newton, an associate clinical professor and outreach and community engagement coordinator at the College of Nursing, understanding those connections is central to her work as a nurse, educator, and community engagement leader. The fellowship also provided her with new ideas for preparing nursing students to understand and advocate for policies and resources that affect their patients.

Newton was selected as an Education Fellow for the 2026 USDA E. Kika De La Garza Fellowship Program and was one of two University of Arizona faculty members chosen for the fellowship. The program brought together faculty and staff from Hispanic-Serving Institutions and leaders across the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Established by the USDA in 1998, the fellowship program strengthens relationships between the department and Hispanic-Serving Institutions and raises awareness of opportunities in education, research, and the workforce.

During the July fellowship in Washington, D.C., Newton met with USDA leaders and subject-matter experts across food and nutrition, rural development, agricultural research and education, conservation, food safety, and community and economic development. Representatives from other federal agencies also discussed educational programs, research opportunities, workforce development, and ways Hispanic-Serving Institutions can build stronger federal partnerships.

What surprised Newton most was the extent of the USDA’s influence on health.

“Many people think primarily of farming when they hear USDA, but its work also affects nutrition, food access, rural infrastructure, environmental health, education, and economic opportunity,” Newton said. “These conditions determine whether individuals, families, and communities can be healthy. The fellowship helped me see USDA as an important partner in advancing health equity.”

For nurses, these connections are familiar. Nurses routinely care for patients whose health is affected by food and nutrition insecurity, transportation, housing, and access to other community resources, particularly in rural and underserved communities. USDA programs related to nutrition assistance, rural development, community food systems, and health and wellness also offer opportunities for nursing education, research, and community engagement.

The fellowship also prompted Newton to rethink the power of the nursing voice in policymaking. Presentations by Mindy M. Brashears, PhD, Under Secretary for Food Safety, and Shiela Corley of the Food and Nutrition Administration highlighted how legislation and policymaking can affect the health of patients and communities.

“Their discussion of legislation and policymaking made me realize that advocating for our patients also means being present at the tables where decisions affecting their health and communities are made,” Newton said.

The potential reach of that voice is significant. There are approximately six million actively licensed RNs in the United States, with about 88% currently working in the profession, and more than 461,000 nurse practitioners. Newton says the profession's size gives nurses an opportunity to influence health not only for individual patients but also for families and entire communities.

That insight will directly inform Newton’s teaching at the College of Nursing. She plans to integrate lessons from the fellowship into her Health Equity courses, helping students examine how food systems, agriculture, nutrition, rural health, community resources, and public policy affect health.

More importantly, Newton aims to make health policy education more experiential.

“Nursing programs teach students to advocate at the bedside, but students must also understand how legislation, policy, and community resources affect their patients,” Newton said. “My responsibility is to bring these connections to life by making health policy education more experiential.”

Newton plans to give students opportunities to follow a bill, communicate with elected officials, and use patient and community experiences to advocate for change.

“When our students graduate, I want them to be prepared not only to provide excellent care but also to serve as informed and effective advocates for patients, families, and communities,” Newton said.

The fellowship will also benefit the college beyond the classroom. Newton plans to share information with faculty on potential interdisciplinary collaborations and federal funding opportunities, leveraging connections made during the fellowship to support future teaching, research, and community engagement initiatives.

For Newton, the fellowship’s greatest value may not be what she learned during her week in Washington, but what she can bring back to her students and colleagues. By linking nursing education to the policies, programs, and community conditions that shape health, she hopes to prepare the next generation of Wildcat nurses to make a difference not only at the bedside but wherever decisions affecting the health of patients, families, and communities are made.