PSY Student Spotlight: Lia Moore from TheGreenCuisine
January 4, 2024 - Shelly DeJong
Lia Moore, a senior MSU psychology major, recently launched a new vegan cooking show, TheGreenCuisine. In the pilot episode, Lia and her guest, Maliq Carr, recreate his favorite food but with plant-based ingredients. We sat down with Lia recently to talk about her pivot after a medical retirement from volleyball, her love of learning, and what led her to her new cooking show.
Can you tell us a bit about your background and what led to TheGreenCuisine?
I came to MSU in 2020 to play volleyball. During that time, my life was volleyball, volleyball, and volleyball. Classes were all online so I lived and breathed volleyball. I ended up having to medically retire due to a heart condition my sophomore year, though, which was extremely hard. But I started to really appreciate the classes I was taking--and began to realize that I can really do whatever I want to do as long as I put my mind to it. I’ve always wanted to be a media personality, but I never had the time to focus on that because athletics was my whole entire life.
I took Intro to Human Nutrition in my junior year, and I started to realize that I should be intentional on what type of food I put into my body. I decided to try veganism. I opened my mind to a different way of eating and its had a big impact on my life. I started thinking of ways that I could help others experience that as well.
I joined Ashton Henderson’s and Angela Montie’s EXP Tour for student athletes and we went to Detroit to a bunch of companies to learn how to network...and I caught on fast. We ended up going to some studios and I walked around and just knew that I could do this. Usually, it is hard to break into the media, but I was aligned with the right person at the right time which was really affirming to my dream. I got to meet McGraw Multimedia which is owned by two brothers, John and Eldon McGraw. I pitched them an idea and they said yes! I've been working on TheGreenCuisine since June. It was a long process to get the pilot out!
You seem like you have such an interest in learning and trying new things. Can you talk about that?
When I was growing up, my mom and my dad made sure that like me and my brother were exposed to so many different things. I grew up traveling all over the place and not being shy to try new things. I was raised to always try different things because you don't know what you're going to like. Even after I stopped playing volleyball, I had to go through another phase of finding out what I like and being open minded and trying new things. And at that time, I only liked volleyball. I had no idea that there were other things out here, especially at Michigan State.
I realized that I’m here to learn. I have a million questions that go through my brain every day. Once a topic is introduced to me in class, my brain instantly tries to make connections between what I learned and real-world problems. I need to know more so that I can break it down in a simpler way to people. I enjoy learning difficult, complex things and then breaking it down for others in simple ways. I do love learning.
Does psychology play into TheGreenCuisine?
When I shot my first pilot episode, a lot of media people were surprised to hear that I’m a psychology major. But to me, psychology affects everything. Psychology can even impact media—how you can grab someone’s attention, how you can teach better. It’s all incorporated together. Psychology can really be applied everywhere. I love psychology. I think everyone should do psychology.
I love knowing how people's brains work. In my Psychology and Leadership class, I loved learning about different types of leadership and how your personality plays a role in your leadership skills. Because I played sports, I was interested in learning how different personalities play a role in how a team comes together. I remember how hard my teammates and I had to work to balance out our personalities so that we could come together as a team. I’m going to keep pursuing my media career right now but if I ever go back to grad school, I want to pursue Organizational Psychology because I find that fascinating.
Have any professors helped you in your journey of figuring out what you want to do?
Professor Ryan has been super helpful in this whole process, and I really loved taking her Fairness in the Workplace course. Dr. Daisy Chang has also been vital. I met her in my sophomore year when I took Industrial Organization with her. I emailed her over the summer, and she really took the time to talk with me about what my different avenues are and how to navigate it. She would continually check in about how I was doing and where I was at with grad school. When I was trying to decide if I should pursue my media career or continue with Organizational Psychology, Dr. Chang was super supportive and really encouraged me to go for my dreams. She has been such an inspiration to me.
What’s a piece of advice you’d give to other students?
My best advice would be don't leave college the same person that you came in. I know that I've changed exponentially. I want people to be aware of their journey throughout college and make it beautiful. Make memories, make a lot of friends, and stay focused. Have your fun, but just be mindful and don't miss out on growing as a person and gaining professional experiences.
Learn as much as you can while you’re here. Don't just come for a degree without connecting with your professors or other students or organizations. There are people here genuinely to help you follow your dreams. People get into this career so that they can help students, so let them help you. Put yourself out there and challenge yourself throughout the four years.
Is there anything else that you wish that we had talked about or that you'd like to add?
One thing I would add is for people to go watch my show and follow on Instagram. We'll have new episodes coming out soon, probably starting next semester!