Lauren Lessard

Dr. Lauren Lessard is an Assistant Professor at the Institute for Circumpolar Health Studies and a maternal and child epidemiologist within the Division of Population Health Sciences at the University of Alaska Anchorage. She specializes in addressing reproductive health disparities and inequities through research protocols and interventions. Her current work includes leading Project EMBRACE, a PCORI-funded comparative effectiveness study evaluating enhanced prenatal care systems.

Education: Dr. Lessard holds a PhD in Public Health from UCLA, an MPH in Maternal and Child Health from UC Berkeley, and a BA in Political and Community Science from UC Santa Cruz. Prior to academia, she served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Suriname and held roles such as Research Director for the Fresno County Preterm Birth Initiative and Research Scientist at the Central Valley Health Policy Institute (CSU Fresno).

Research Interests: Her work focuses on maternal mental health, obesity and contraception use in pregnancy, racial/cultural humility in healthcare, adolescent preconception health, and comorbidities linked to preterm birth. She emphasizes collaborative approaches with practitioners and patients to address systemic health inequities.

Grants & Projects: Current funding includes a PCORI grant for prenatal care systems research. Past projects included preterm birth initiatives in the Central Valley. She has extensive experience coordinating multidisciplinary teams to tackle complex public health challenges.

Affiliations: Active faculty member at UAA since 2017, part of the Institute for Circumpolar Health Studies, and collaborates with institutions like CSU Fresno. She also maintains roles in professional service within her division.