Lauren Kearns

Biography

Professor Lauren Kearns is the Associate Chair of the Performing Arts Department, a tenured Professor of Dance, the Founding Coordinator of the B.F.A. in Dance Performance and Choreography degree as well as the B.S. in Dance Science degree. Ms. Kearns has received over thirty grants, fellowships, and awards to support her artistic scholarship and is a published scholar in the areas of Dance, Critique as Signature Pedagogy, Multi-Media, and Somatics. Her book, "Somatics in Action: A Mindful and Physical Tool for Movers", published by Handspring Publishing, will be released in the fall of 2017. Ms. Kearns was named one of three Senior Faculty Research Fellows in 2016 and will be working on a two-year creative project, "On the Move: a series of dance installations" beginning in the fall of 2017. Ms. Kearns was featured in the 2016 President's Report for her creative scholarship. She has been a guest teacher and presenter at the American College Dance Festival since 2000, an invited presenter at the 2008, 2009, and 2013 National Dance Education Conference, an invited presenter at the 2015 and 2017 International Association of Dance Medicine and Science Conference, an invited presenter at the 2012 Dance 2050 Vision Conference, was named the 2013 Guest Artist for the Penn-Griffin School for the Arts in High Point, N.C.and was the 2009-2010 Guest Artist for the Winston-Salem All County Dance Consortium.

Research Interest

Professor Kearns research agenda includes the application of somatic theories to dance training and performance, the creative and aesthetic implications of somatic practices, and the utilization of autobiography and multi-media in contemporary dance. Ms. Kearns is a curriculum specialist in the areas of dance education, somatic training, and creative process.