From grants to social work graduates, Dr. Lisa Shannon impacts lives in and out of the classroom  

Dr. Lisa Shannon has dedicated the last 13 years to using her social work expertise to make a positive impact at Morehead State University and the region the University serves.   

Shannon is a professor of social work at MSU who also uses her skill as an evaluator to assist agencies with obtaining government funding for vital services and resources. In the past year, she was honored by the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) with an Outstanding Faculty - Commitment to Student Success award and MSU as the Distinguished Researcher. Today, Shannon continues using her knowledge of the grant and evaluation to help Kentuckians affected by mental health issues, substance use disorders, and the COVID-19 pandemic.   

"Over the last couple of years, I've seen more grant opportunities focused on mental health and substance use," she said. "That was something COVID impacted very dramatically for many people."   

Shannon said she focuses most on developing the grant evaluation component, which is crucial to getting approval and receiving funding. Currently, one agency she works with is Mountain Comprehensive Care Center, a behavioral health agency based in Prestonsburg with facilities across Kentucky. In addition to helping obtain grants for mental health and substance use issues, she has helped with grant evaluations related to individuals re-entering communities from jails/prisons.   

During and after the pandemic, Shannon primarily taught courses in research methods and data analysis sequences at MSU at Prestonsburg. She said while most people think of social work as going out into the field to deal with individuals and families in Kentucky, she has witnessed an increased interest in the research side of social work from her students. In the last two years, she had two Undergraduate Research Fellows under her mentorship and two practicum students who gained experience as part of her evaluation team.   

"I think that what I'm teaching has kind of just emerged as a growing area of social work probably in the last two years," she said. "It's just because of all of what we experienced with COVID, all of the associated federal funding; it's just becoming more recognized as an emerging field of social work."   

For Shannon, based on her work in the field and the education she is giving her students, she believes the next generation of social workers will utilize even more research/evaluation to make a difference in the lives of Kentucky families.   

"Being able to show what social workers are doing is effective; it's kind of the best of both worlds," she said.    

Dr. Lisa Shannon can be reached at l.shannon@moreheadstate.edu or 606-783-2638.    

For more information about social work programs at Morehead State, email s.davison@moreheadstate.edu or call 606-783-2273.