Rachel Chadderdon Bair has worked with Kalamazoo Valley Community College as director for sustainable food systems since 2015, when the college constructed its Food Innovation Center and Healthy Living Campus. Bair leads the development of academic, workforce and enrichment programming that focuses on sustainability and community economic development in the food system. This programming revolves around ValleyHUB, a social enterprise urban farm and food hub that actively works to connect farms with institutional, retail and restaurant markets throughout Southwest Michigan.
Prior to her role at KVCC, Bair worked in the nonprofit sector as the director of the statewide Double Up Food Bucks program, which matches SNAP benefits spent on healthy Michigan-grown foods. Born and raised in Kalamazoo, she earned a Bachelor of Arts from Northwestern University. Bair also holds a Master of Public Health and a Master of Science in natural resources, both from the University of Michigan.