Melinda Lewis

Melinda Lewis is a professor of practice in the School of Social Welfare at the University of Kansas. She earned her BSW from KU, where she participated in the honors program, and her MSW from Washington University in St. Louis. Her professional practice is in nonprofit and grassroots community organizing, policy advocacy, and strategic communications, focused on the domains of economic justice, family supports, and human rights, particularly immigrant rights. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in human rights, policy analysis, international social work (in Costa Rica!), and advocacy practice in the School of Social Welfare. She also directs the Center on Community Engagement and Collaboration, where she leads efforts in lifelong learning, public scholarship, and support for community-engaged research.