Zakiya Jenkins, BS, MPA

Sis, You Need Her Messages

This session explores nourishment as a form of resistance and restoration in communities disproportionately impacted by stress, food insecurity, and chronic disease. Participants will examine how food, faith, and culturally responsive wellness practices can support healing on physical, emotional, and communal levels. Through storytelling, evidence-based nutrition education, and reflective practices, this session centers nourishment as both a personal and collective act of care.

Attendees will be able to reframe health beyond dieting and deficit models, incorporating sustainable nourishment strategies rooted in culture, accessibility, and compassion. This session is designed for individuals seeking to support holistic wellbeing while honoring lived experience and community wisdom.

What You'll Be Able to Do!

Identify how nourishment functions as a tool for healing and empowerment in our communities!
Apply culturally responsive nutrition and wellness strategies at home or in community settings.
Participate in and adapt low-impact movement practices suitable for your body type and abilities!

Who She Is

Zakiya Jenkins, BS, MPA, is a seasoned public health leader, community nutrition educator, and holistic wellness practitioner whose work spans nearly two decades at the intersection of health equity, food systems, and faith-based healing. She is the founder of Nourished by Faith Wellness, LLC where she integrates evidence-based nutrition education, movement, and spiritual grounding to help individuals and communities reclaim health in ways that are sustainable, culturally responsive, and deeply affirming.

Zakiya’s leadership in public health began in 2006 and includes more than a decade as Director of Primary Healthcare (2012–2017), followed by her role as Founding Executive Director of Grace Fitness (2019–2025). Across these roles, she has designed and led programs that address chronic disease prevention, access to care, lifestyle change, and community wellness—bringing both strategic oversight and hands-on implementation to complex health challenges. Her work reflects a rare ability to translate public health knowledge into practices people can actually live with and sustain.

Her academic foundation is equally rigorous. Zakiya holds a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Upper Iowa University, both earned Summa Cum Laude, and a Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from North Carolina Central University, also earned Summa Cum Laude. She is additionally credentialed as a CDC Certified Lifestyle Coach, Certified Community Health Worker, and Certified Personal Trainer through the National Academy of Sports Medicine, grounding her work in policy, nutrition science, behavior change, and physical wellness.

Faith is not separate from Zakiya’s expertise—it is central to how she understands healing, stewardship, and leadership. Through Nourished by Faith Wellness, LLC she creates spaces where joy, clarity, and accountability coexist, and where people are invited to care for their bodies without shame, restriction, or fear. Known for her bubbly spirit, high energy, and magnetic facilitation style, Zakiya brings warmth and authority into every room—leaving participants not only informed, but energized, equipped, and confident in their ability to nourish themselves and their communities.

For more information, email her at nourishedbyfaithco@gmail.com.