RONDA RUTLEDGE
Executive Director

Ronda Rutledge is the Executive Director of Sustainable Food Center in Austin Texas.  She represents SFC on the Basic Needs Coalition and was appointed by city council to the Sustainable Food Policy Board of Austin/Travis County, where she chairs the Access and Wellness Committee.  She was introduced to SFC as an affiliate consultant with Greenlights for Nonprofit Success.  Prior to joining SFC, Ronda served as Executive Director of the American Indian Child Resource Center in Oakland, California for nearly ten years. She was a LeaderSpring fellow in the Bay Area - a leadership program for Executive Directors of nonprofit organizations.

Ronda holds a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology. Over the course of her professional career, she has been a Licensed Professional Counselor, Marriage and Family Therapist, and Clinical Director for a residential treatment facility in addition to her nonprofit work.  She currently serves as a volunteer on the Austin Powwow Committee for Great Promise and is an officiant for nontraditional weddings and commitment ceremonies in the Austin area.  She is married and has twin daughters, River and Raven, who help her shop at the Austin Farmers’ Market for healthy, local food. 

SUSAN LEIBROCK
Community Relations Director
Upon graduating from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications, Susan lived in New York City for seven years, working in both the restaurant industry and for five years at the flagship office of J. Walter Thompson (JWT), the global advertising agency. Susan worked on integrated marketing campaigns for JetBlue, Kleenex, Unilever and Pfizer/Johnson & Johnson, realizing as she researched supermarket industry trends that she wanted to help solve the issues surrounding food marketing in the U.S. Susan attended French Culinary Institute and read many books on local food systems and sustainable agriculture before returning to Austin in summer '07. An avid traveler, Susan has most recently been to Tokyo, Barcelona and Israel. She enjoys cooking for others whenever possible.

JOY CASNOVSKY

The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre™ Program Director

Though originally from Austin, Joy has lived in Minnesota, California and Oregon to promote environmental stewardship within the National Park Service and the non-profit sector. While living in Ecuador, Joy worked for The Kallari Association, which is a self-governed coalition of Amazon artists and organic cocoa producers. For two years, Joy served as a representative of the U.S. Peace Corps in Bolivia. She directed a town-wide recycling program and taught nutrition courses. Joy first became interested in the dynamics of food as an undergraduate student. In her free time, Joy enjoys cooking delicious meals from her garden, catching up with the live music scene and traveling off the beaten path.

ADRIANA PRIOLEAU

The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre™ Program Coordinator

Adriana Prioleau moved to Austin in 1997.  She has worked as a tailor, in a civil engineering company and for a gardening center.  Through all of it she has grown her own organic vegetables.  Her personal research and experience has taught her how important good nutrition is and how much fun it is to cook delicious, healthy food like her mother did. 

Suzanne Santos
SFC Farmers' Market Director
Suzanne Santos holds a Master of Science in Community Development from the University of California at Davis and has worked to promote local food systems for the past fifteen years. Ms. Santos joined Sustainable Food Center in 2000 as Executive Director, then served as Development Director when the agency merged, bringing significant marketing and management experience to the organization. Her passion for farming led Ms. Santos to her niche connecting local farmers with urban markets. Prior to joining SFC, Suzanne worked for three years in Costa Rica and Honduras on agricultural projects as a representative of the Peace Corps. Along with her work at SFC, Ms. Santos runs a small family farm in Kyle, Texas, where she raises two sons, peaches, chickens, and a goose.

CECIL WINZER

SFC Farmers' Market Manager

Cecil Winzer holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Texas at Austin.  Mr. Winzer joined SFC in early 2006 as a crew member for the Austin Farmers' Market, helping setup and breakdown the market on Saturdays.  His involvement and passion grew when he found out that the food he was eating was not raised the way his grandfather farmed in Waco.  His eyes were opened to the environmental, health, economic and animal cruelty implications of factory farming.  When he is not working at the Austin Farmer's Market, Cecil is working on his real estate and technology businesses (he is a licensed Real Estate Broker), and spends most of his time raising his four children with wife Aileen.  When he has spare time he also enjoys Austin's great outdoors, the Children's Museum, Austin Zoo, Enchanted Rock, Zilker Park, and the Central Texas Wine Trail.

ANDREW SMILEY

Farm Direct Projects Director
Andrew Smiley has over 12 years experience working in sustainable agriculture and food systems, including on-farm production, agricultural marketing, micro-enterprise development, food journalism, farmer training and technical assistance - and even food-service management.  His initial interest in food and farming grew out of his positive experiences with family as a child - shelling peas and shucking corn on the porch, snacking on ripe strawberries while picking in the field and uncovering buried treasure in the potato or carrot patch.  Andrew received his B.A. in Political Science from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.  He is the former Executive Director of Baton Rouge Economic and Agricultural Development Alliance, Inc. (BREADA).  Andrew is an active supporter and volunteer of the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (Southern SAWG) and Texas Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (TOFGA) and has applied his passion for gardening, small-scale farming and healthy cooking to his work with SFC since 2005.

SARI ALBORNOZ
Grow Local Program Director
Sari Albornoz holds a Bachelor of Arts in Biology and Anthropology from Reed College, and a life-long interest in ecology, conservation, and the relationship between nature's processes and human society. She is inspired by the many ways in which community and school food gardening can positively impact individuals, communities, and the environment, and she is passionate about spreading awareness of these benefits to the people of her native Austin. Previous to starting work with the Sustainable Food Center, Sari spent a year gardening with youth as part of her term of service with AmeriCorps/4-H CAPITAL. Sari greatly enjoys tasting new foods while visiting new places (especially in Latin America), seeing kids get excited about natural phenomena, swimming holes, and succulents.

JESS GUFFEY
Grow Local Program Coordinator
Originally from St. Louis, Jess has spent time exploring many different regions of the country, including working on an organic farm in central Washington and managing a community garden in Tucson.  Her great-grandparents emigrated from Italy to southern Illinois, where they started a farm that is still family-owned and serves as a central gathering place for family get-togethers.  Jess has a Bachelor of Arts in Human Biology from Brown University, and enjoys spending time cooking, making art projects, and playing ultimate frisbee.

REBECCA SALTSMAN

Volunteer Coordinator and Development Associate

Rebecca Saltsman hails from Southern California and grew up surrounded by good food and amazing local produce. She left California to teach English abroad for 2 years and subsequently moved to Austin to obtain her MSW from the University of Texas. After graduating with a concentration in Community Organizing and Nonprofit Management, Rebecca has since made it her mission to combine her education and experiences with her passion for cooking, an avid interest in the culture of food, and her desire to create an active and healthy community.

Debi Vanwey
Finance Director
Debi Vanwey has been with Sustainable Food Center since early 2003.  She brings many years of experience in finance, human resources, computer systems, and small business management.  She has worked in corporate environments, and has owned and managed her own small businesses, including a naturals food store, and a private chef and catering service.  She enjoys working at SFC where others share her belief that we can make a difference in our lives by eating well...and eating locally!