Dr. Lacey Corneliusen, DSW, LCSW

Associate Professor

Office: Memorial Hall - 230H
Email: lacey.corneliusen@minotstateu.edu
Phone Number: 701-858-3585

Education:
B.A. University of Montana, Missoula Montana (2008)
M.S.W Walla Walla University, Walla Walla Washington (2010)
D.S.W Capella University, Minneapolis, Minnesota (2021)

License:
Licensed Clinical Social Worker- North Dakota 2013

Dr. Lacey Corneliusen brings more than 14 years of frontline experience to her role as an Associate Professor of Social Work at Minot State University. A Licensed Clinical Social Worker in North Dakota, she remains actively engaged in practice because she values the work and the connection it provides to the people, communities, and challenges at the heart of the profession. Her continued practice shapes her teaching, helping students connect classroom learning with the complexities of professional social work. In her teaching, she encourages students to ask difficult questions, examine their assumptions, and develop the confidence to navigate ethical challenges with both compassion and accountability.

Dr. Corneliusen holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Rural and Environmental Studies and master’s and doctoral degrees in Social Work with a clinical practice emphasis. Her clinical background spans adolescent residential programs, inpatient hospitals, corrections, intensive in-home services, public schools, and private practice. Alongside her academic responsibilities, she provides mental health consulting services to a government agency, offering clinical guidance, supporting complex decision-making, and contributing to staff development and ethical practice.

Her research focuses on mental health access, human connection, and well-being in educational and workplace settings. Her work examining barriers to mental health services among college students has been presented nationally. She has also collaborated on research exploring virtual reality as an accessible approach to relaxation and reducing stress and anxiety among college students, with this work presented to an international audience. Her emerging research interests include workplace connection and belonging, with planned research exploring their relationship to employee well-being and retention.

Dr. Corneliusen’s broader contributions include work on federally funded health professions education and workforce development initiatives. She has also contributed to curriculum design and accreditation planning for a master’s program in substance use and mental health counseling, supporting efforts to strengthen the behavioral health workforce.

Her dedication to the profession includes service as Vice Chair of the North Dakota Board of Social Work Examiners from 2019 to 2026 and as a board member with the Social Work Licensure Compact. Through these roles, she has contributed to clinical licensure standards, regulatory policy, legislative testimony, and efforts to support practice across state lines.

Across her teaching, research, and consultation, Dr. Corneliusen is particularly interested in moral courage and professional integrity, including how organizational cultures and policy pressures shape practitioners’ ability to uphold their ethical commitments. Her interests encompass compassion fatigue, moral distress, and burnout, with attention to the responsibilities of organizations and systems in supporting ethical practice and professional well-being. She is committed to preparing social workers who exercise sound judgment, advocate for meaningful change, and remain grounded in the dignity of those they serve.