LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 15, 2026) — The University of Kentucky (UK) College of Social Work (CoSW) is proud to announce the promotion of Laneshia Conner, Ph.D., to associate professor with tenure, recognizing her outstanding contributions to research, teaching and service in the field of social work.
A Lexington native and alumna of the CoSW, Conner has emerged as a nationally recognized scholar whose work addresses community health, aging, HIV prevention and culturally responsive health education. Her research focuses particularly on improving sexual health outcomes and HIV risk-reduction strategies for older Black women and aging communities through sustainable, community-informed interventions.
“Dr. Conner’s work exemplifies the kind of scholarship that not only advances knowledge, but directly impacts our community,” said Jackie Duron, Ph.D., associate dean of faculty advancement at CoSW. “Her continued dedication to research, teaching and mentorship reflects the very best of our mission. We are proud to see her continued growth at CoSW.”
Since joining CoSW, Conner has built a nationally recognized research portfolio grounded in community-engaged practice and implementation science.
Her research program has received support from several prestigious federal agencies, including the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) and the National Institute on Aging (NIA). Most recently, she received a multi-year grant from the NIA to further advance her work related to sexual health and aging populations.
Among her recent projects is Advancing Gerontological Health Education, an initiative supported by the UK UNITE Humanities Pilot Grant. The project addresses a longstanding gap in sexual health education for older adults, through the development of age-informed education tools like 2D flashcards. These tools are designed to support conversations around sexual health, wellbeing, hygiene practices and disease prevention in later life.
“Most sexual health education models are designed with younger populations in mind,” Conner shared. “There’s a need for resources that consider the changes that occur with age and how those changes might impact sexual health.”
Conner’s scholarship has also gained national attention for its interdisciplinary and innovative approaches to teaching and learning. One of the College’s most popular courses, Horror Films and Social Welfare, explores horror films as a framework for examining critical social issues, including racism, mental health, fear, artificial intelligence and societal responses to crisis. Since launching the course in 2021, Conner has used horror cinema as a form of critical pedagogy, helping students examine how fear is socially constructed and how media shapes public perception and social behavior.
Her work has extended to public scholarship and speaking engagements. Conner was selected as a TEDx speaker, where she shared perspectives on culturally responsive education, community engagement and advancing conversations surrounding health and social change.
In addition to her research and teaching, Conner has been recognized nationally and institutionally for her scholarship and leadership. She received the Lyman T. Johnson Award, one of the University’s longstanding honors recognizing individuals who had demonstrated outstanding leadership in inclusive excellence and impact. She was also named a 2025 mentor for the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) and previously received national recognition from the Society for Social Work and Research for her article “Black Experiences Matter: Reflections of Black Faculty Experiences with Black Administrators.”
Conner received mentoring, multidisciplinary research training, and career development training through two internal research training programs: the DREAM Scholars Program and the BIRCWH program, one of UK’s founding programs funded by NIDA.
Conner has served as adviser to the Association of Black Social Workers at UK from its inception in 2021 through its dissolution in 2025, chaired the college’s curriculum committee and served as a faculty senator. Beyond academia, she is active in the Lexington community through youth mentorship, coaching track and field at a local high school and running her own AAU youth track and field club in the summer.