Dr. Jan Pearce

Dr. Jan Pearce, Professor

Computer and Information Science Program Coordinator,
Chair of Division II,
Resources, Technology, and Commerce

Campus Post: 1815
Berea College
Berea, KY 40404-0001

Office: Draper 304B
(859) 985-3569
Fax: (859) 985-3906

Spring 2012 Office Hours:
MF 11:00 am-11:50 am & MW 2:00-2:50 pm and by appointment or luck

Brief Bio

Jan Pearce believes it is the job of every educator to help students to understand the past and present and to develop the tools to improve the world of the future. Her current research interests are in the areas of swarm robotics, environmental modeling, and computer science education. Her work has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation, the Jessie Ball DuPont Fund, the National Campus Compact: Learn and Serve America, the Appalachian College Association, and Berea College. She has published a number of journal and conference papers. She was a 2001 recipient of the Mathematics Association of America (MAA) Allendorfer Prize for mathematical writing excellence, a 1994 recipient of the Augustana College Andrew W. Williamson Award for excellence in mathematics, and a 1991 recipient of the University of Rochester Joseph Whittaker Fellowship award for teaching excellence. She currently serves as an associate editor of IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA). She served on the award committee for the Mathematics Association of America (MAA) Allendorfer Prize and has reviewed books and articles for Addison-Wesley-Longman, Houghton-Mifflin Publishing, the International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS) , IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), and the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) Mathematics Magazine. She has done extensive work in the area of computer science education and curriculum and has served on several NSF grant review panels in the Division of Undergraduate Education and the Division of Computer and Network Systems.

In addition to her work in the computer and information sciences, Dr. Pearce has a longtime interest in social dance. She teaches and performs with the Lexington Vintage Dance Society (LVDS), which is dedicated to researching, teaching, performing, and promoting the ballroom and social dance forms of the 19th and early 20th centuries. With the LVDS performance troupe she has been in special performances with the Kentucky Ballet Theatre, and has also danced for the Lexington Chamber Chorale, the Owensboro Symphony, and the Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra. Through LVDS, she organizes a monthy social dance called "Mostly Waltz," a social dance with live music. In addition, she had taught workshops on Argentine tango throughout the Bluegrass region and partnered with local teachers in Buenos Aires, Argentina.