Dr. David Olson

David Olson is a Professor in the Criminal Justice and Criminology Department at Loyola University Chicago, and is also the Co-Director of Loyola’s interdisciplinary Center for Criminal Justice. Prior to coming to Loyola, Dr. Olson worked at the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, where he was the director of Illinois’ Statewide Drug and Violent Crime Control Strategy Impact Evaluation Program. During his 35-year career, David has been the PI on more than $11 million in research grants, published more than 100 articles, monographs and research bulletins, and made more than 150 presentations at professional conferences and to governmental/legislative bodies. Dr. Olson has served as staff to, or been appointed to, a number of Illinois commissions and task forces established to address crime and incarceration, and currently serves on the advisory boards of the Illinois Department of Corrections, the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice, the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, and the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Pretrial Practices Implementation Task Force. David received his B.S. in Criminal Justice from Loyola University Chicago, his M.A. in Criminal Justice from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and his Ph.D. in Political Science/Public Policy Analysis from the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he was the recipient of the Assistant United States Attorney General’s Graduate Research Fellowship.