🌎 Resumen en español · traducción automática
Ann L. Coker, profesora de medicina y directora ejecutiva interina del Centro de Investigación sobre Prevención de la Violencia en la Universidad de Kentucky, ha sido nombrada Profesora de Investigación Universitaria 2026-27 por su trabajo pionero en investigación y capacitación en prevención de la violencia, recibiendo un premio de 10,000 dólares. Coker ha dedicado su carrera a documentar los efectos de la violencia en la salud y desarrollar estrategias de prevención, siendo especialmente reconocida por su trabajo con el programa Green Dot, que mostró reducciones de 12-13% en las tasas de victimización por violencia sexual en 26 escuelas secundarias de Kentucky. Además de su trabajo en UK desde su incorporación a las Facultades de Medicina y Salud Pública, ha liderado programas de los Institutos Nacionales de Salud y ha asegurado financiamiento de los Centros para el Control y la Prevención de Enfermedades para abordar la prevención del tráfico sexual infantil.
Traducción y resumen generados por IA a partir del artículo en inglés. Puede contener errores; consulte el texto original.
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Ann L. Coker, a professor of medicine and acting executive director of the Center for Research on Violence Prevention at the University of Kentucky, has been named a 2026-27 University Research Professor for her groundbreaking work in violence prevention research and training.
The distinction, which recognizes excellence in work addressing scientific, social, cultural and economic challenges, comes with a one-year award of $10,000 as part of a program established by the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees in 1976.
Coker earned her Ph.D. in cancer epidemiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1987 and has spent her career documenting the health effects of violence and developing prevention strategies. Her career trajectory shifted in 1982 when she worked at the Houston Area Women’s Center, an experience she described as transformative.
“The impact of violence on the physical, sexual, psychological and emotional levels for mothers, children and, often, for the partner using violence was stunning,” Coker said in remarks accompanying her honor.
At UK since joining the College of Medicine and College of Public Health, Coker has become a leading researcher in bystander-based violence prevention, most notably through her work with the Green Dot program. A five-year study she led evaluating the program in 26 Kentucky high schools found that sexual violence victimization rates were significantly lower in schools implementing Green Dot, with some measures showing 12-13% reductions.
Green Dot is an evidence-based primary prevention program designed to teach participants safe ways to intervene in situations of dating and domestic violence, sexual harassment and assault, and child abuse. The program has expanded statewide and now operates across Lexington and other Kentucky communities.
Coker has also led the National Institutes of Health’s Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health program at UK since 2000, and has secured funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to address child sex trafficking prevention.
“Public health is essential to our collective well-being. More funding for public health research and practice results in a safer and healthier world,” Coker said when asked about her continued motivation for the work.
Seventeen faculty members were named University Research Professors for 2026-27, with the university recognizing excellence across the full spectrum of research fields.
This article was generated by AI (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) based on source material from University of Kentucky News, enriched with 3 web searches. The original source is available at https://uknow.uky.edu/research/ann-l-coker-2026-27-university-research-professor-qa.
