Laura Olson

Laura Olson serves as an Associate Professor and Doctoral Program Co-Director at Jacksonville State University since January 2024. Olson has been involved in various roles within disaster and emergency management education, including as Associate Faculty at Royal Roads University and Faculty Lecturer at Georgetown University. In addition, Olson co-chairs the Training and Education committee for the Culture and Disaster Action Network, contributing to the integration of cultural comprehension in disaster preparedness and recovery. Experience extends to consulting roles with UNDP on disaster recovery planning and training initiatives and a tenure as Federal Disaster Recovery Officer with FEMA. Academic qualifications include a PhD in Public Administration from The George Washington University and dual Master’s degrees in Political Science and German Language and Literature from Heidelberg University, alongside a BA in Political Philosophy from Macalester College.