Laura Escobar-Ratliff
Clinical Assistant Professor, DSW Program Director
Areas of Expertise
- SW852: Introduction to Doctoral Studies
- SW853: Contemporary Concepts in Social Work
- SW856: Science of Social Work
- SW863: Advanced Administrative and Supervisory Practice
- SW864: Advance Policy for Social Work Practice
Highlighted Publications
- Escobar-Ratliff, L.E. (2021, September). Is the DSW Degree a good fit for you? The New Social Worker.
- Escobar-Ratliff, L.E. (2022). A call to action: Justice-informed social work practice. In K. Benner, D. Loeffler, & N.D. Pope (Eds.), Social, Economic and Environmental Justice: Building Social Work Practice Skills (pp. 275 – 283). Springer Publishing Company.
- Escobar-Ratliff, L.E. & Barillas, K. (2022, October). Celebrating Hispanic-Latinx history month: Promoting expansive self-care. The New Social Worker Online.
Student & Research Availability
- Research or Interest Area Key Words: doctoral social work education, program development and evaluation, the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL), Latinx communities, and leadership in the helping professions.
Alma Mater
St. Catherine University-University of St. Thomas School of Social Work St. Paul, Minnesota Doctorate of Social Work, 2018
Get to Know Laura
Dr. Laura Escobar-Ratliff, DSW, is a Clinical Assistant Professor and Doctor of Social Work (DSW) Program Director at the University of Kentucky College of Social Work. She brings over 15 years of experience in social work education and more than two decades of leadership in clinical, administrative, and community-based practice.
Dr. Escobar-Ratliff has held faculty appointments across both private and public institutions, where she has taught and led curriculum development at the BSW, MSW, and doctoral levels. In her role at the University of Kentucky, she provides strategic leadership for the DSW program and teaches in the areas of administrative leadership and social work education, with a focus on preparing practitioner-scholars for advanced leadership, teaching, and systems-level impact.
Her professional background encompasses a broad range of behavioral health settings, including community mental health, outpatient and crisis services, substance use treatment, and residential care. She has served in progressively senior roles, from clinician to division director, bringing extensive experience in organizational leadership, program development, and service delivery systems.
Dr. Escobar-Ratliff maintains an active commitment to community engagement, including service on the Board of Directors for La Casita Center and consultation with organizations on behavioral health and leadership initiatives. Her scholarship is informed by her practice expertise and intersectional perspective, with research interests in doctoral social work education, program development and evaluation, the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL), Latinx communities, and leadership in the helping professions.