Renata Sledge

Renata Sledge, PhD, LCSW, is an assistant professor of social work and a faculty affiliate in the Gender Studies Program at the University of Missouri–St. Louis. She studies the ethics of care to understand how social workers navigate the moral and relational complexities of practice. Dr. Sledge’s work challenges the dominant biomedical model in healthcare and advances care as a shared, interdependent process shaped by identity, family, history, and social environments. Publications in journals such as Kidney Medicine, Health & Social Work, and Families, Systems, & Health reflect the interprofessional nature of her scholarship. She is the recipient of the Gerald and Deanne Gitner Excellence in Teaching Award (2025), the Council of Nephrology Social Work Merit Award (2012), the Raphael J. Becvar Award for outstanding clinical, research, and scholarly achievement (2021), and the National Kidney Foundation Outstanding Poster Award (2021 & 2025). Dr. Sledge received her PhD from the Saint Louis University School of Medicine.