Lawrence M. Jackson is a Professor of Dance at The George Mason University School of Dance. Prior to joining GMU, Lawrence held various prominent roles at the University of Alabama, where he served as Associate Chair of Dance, Associate Professor of Dance, Director of Graduate Studies in Dance, and Artistic Director of the Alabama Repertory Dance Theatre. His artistic leadership extended to programs like Dance Alabama, The MFA Dance Concert, and Dance Collection. Throughout his career, he has taught both undergraduate and graduate courses in Jazz, Contemporary Dance, Dance History, Pedagogy, African American Dance Studies, Improvisation, and Choreography.

Professionally, Lawrence spent several years performing with the internationally renowned Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble. His talents as a guest artist have been featured in national and international concert dance venues. As a prolific choreographer, Lawrence has created over 95 original works. One of his recent achievements includes choreographing the off-Broadway production Separate and Equal, which was nominated for an AUDELCO Award for Best Choreography.

In the realm of dance scholarship, Lawrence has made significant contributions to the field of Black Dance. He co-edited and published a special edition of the Journal of Pan African Studies focusing entirely on Black Dance—only the second academic journal edition in history dedicated to this subject. His scholarly work is recognized widely, and he currently serves on the editorial board of Siyabonana: The Journal of Africana Studies. Lawrence’s academic excellence was acknowledged with The University of Alabama’s President’s Faculty Research Award for a Mid-Career Scholar.