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Jan Edwards to join UMD’s Dept. of Hearing and Speech Sciences, Language Science Center

We’re thrilled to announce that Jan Edwards, currently Professor of Communication Sciences and Disorders at the Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, will be joining UMD’s Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences (HESP) and the Language Science Center starting in Fall 2016.

Jan will be an Associate Director of the Language Science Center as well as a Professor in HESP. She is eager to join Maryland’s active Infant and Child Studies Network and has plans to expand outreach and community activities to engage with a diverse group of children and families locally, and to integrate outreach with clinical and non-clinical research and applications. She is already building new collaborations across the Maryland language science community.

Jan is a leader in connecting fundamental science of language with applications in health and education. Her research centers on how preschool children learn the sounds and words of language, how this relates to language skills more generally, and consequences for literacy and school success. She investigates learning in children with a wide range of language experiences - multiple languages, cochlear implants, autism spectrum disorders, and standard and nonstandard varieties of English. Her research is important for our broader understanding of children’s language development and has significant implications for clinical and educational practice.

With strong family connections to the local area (her father is from Hyattsville), we hope Jan will feel right at home at UMD. We are excited to welcome her to the Maryland Language Science community!