2026 Call for Nominations: Lewis Donohew Outstanding Scholar in Health Communication Award

Call for Nominations: Lewis Donohew Outstanding Scholar in Health Communication Award

Donohew

The 2026 Kentucky Conference on Health Communication (KCHC) is accepting nominations for the Lewis Donohew Outstanding Scholar in Health Communication award. This award recognizes outstanding research contributions to the health communication field made during the biennium preceding each conference.

The award includes travel/hotel/registration to attend the 2026 KCHC and a $500 speaker’s fee. The award recipient will be asked to present her/his research at the conference, so please ensure that the nominee’s schedule allows for travel to Lexington during that time (conference: April 2-4, 2026; presentation: April 4, 2026).

Please send one letter of nomination not to exceed four single spaced pages with standard font and margins (self-nominations accepted) detailing the nominee’s contributions to health communication research during the 2024 and 2025 calendar years and a current curriculum vitae to kchc@lsv.uky.edu.

Deadline for receipt of nominations is January 16, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Notice of award winner will be sent by February 13, 2026.

About the Award

Lewis Donohew, Professor Emeritus, was on the faculty in the Department of Communication, University of Kentucky, from 1964 to 1999. His research focused on increasing the persuasive effectiveness of anti-drug messages. He was instrumental in bringing more than $30 million in federal funding to the University and played a large part in establishing the health communication program for which the department is known. He received the 2001 NCA–ICA Outstanding Health Scholar award.

The Lewis Donohew Outstanding Scholar in Health Communication award was established in Dr. Donohew’s name in 1998 to recognize outstanding research contributions to the health communication field made during the biennium preceding each KCHC conference.

Past Winners

  • 2024 Janet Yang
  • 2022 Jessica Gall Myrick
  • 2020 Xiaoli Nan
  • 2018 Julia van Weert
  • 2016 Seth Noar
  • 2014 Jeff Niederdeppe
  • 2012 David Buller
  • 2010 Elaine Wittenberg-Lyles
  • 2008 Rick Street
  • 2006 Mohan Dutta
  • 2004 Gary Kreps
  • 2002 Everett Rogers
  • 2000 Kim Witte
  • 1998 Michael Slater