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John F. Olson

ACADEMIC EMPLOYMENT:

2017-        Professor Emeritus of Economics, Department of Economics, College of St. Benedict, St. Joseph, Minnesota (a joint academic department with St. John's University, Collegeville, Minnesota
                 2008-2017 Professor of Economics
                 1988-2008 Associate Professor of Economics 
                 1985-1988 Assistant Professor of Economics

                   Chair of CSB/SJU Joint Department of Economics (2007-2010, 1999-2004, 1987-1990)

                   CSB/SJU Director of Undergraduate Research & Honors Thesis Program (August 2001-January 2002)

1981‑85     Assistant Professor of Economics, Department of Economics & Industrial Relations, Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio 1976-81     Instructor of Economics, Department of Economics, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut

1973-76     Graduate Research and Teaching Assistant to Professors Stanley L. Engerman and Robert W. Fogel, Department of Economics, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York

EDUCATION AND DEGREES:

 1972‑76  University of Rochester, Rochester, New York

                     Ph.D., Economics, February 1984
  M.A., Economics, May 1975
  Areas of Concentration:  Economic History and Macroeconomics
  Doctoral Dissertation:  "The Occupational Structure of Plantation Slave Labor in the Late Antebellum Era" (October 1983, supervised by Prof. Stanley L. Engerman)
  Awarded University Graduate Fellowships, 1972‑1974

1968‑72  DePauw University, Greencastle, Indiana

                     B.A. (with Distinction), Economics, May 1972
  Randal L. Wilson Award, Department of Economics, 1972
  Omicron Delta Epsilon, 1972

 PUBLICATIONS AND SCHOLARLY RESEARCH ACTIVITY:

 "Clock‑Time vs. Real‑Time:  A Comparison of the Lengths of the Northern and Southern Agricultural Work‑Years," in Robert W. Fogel and Stanley L. Engerman (eds.), Without Consent or Contract:  Markets and Production, Technical Papers on Slavery, Vol. I, W.W. Norton and Company, 1992.

 "The Occupational Structure of Southern Plantations during the Antebellum Era," in Robert W. Fogel and Stanley L. Engerman (eds.), Without Consent or Contract:  Markets and Production, Technical Papers on Slavery, Vol. I, W.W. Norton and Company, 1992.

 "Basic Procedures for the Computation of Output and Inputs from the Parker‑Gallman Sample, Including a Procedure for the Elimination of Defective Observations," with Stanley L. Engerman in Robert W. Fogel, Ralph A. Galantine, and Richard L. Manning (eds.), Without Consent or Contract:  Evidence and Methods, W.W. Norton and Company, 1992.

 Member (1989‑90) Academic Advisory Board for Annual Editions:   Money and Banking, James P. Egan (ed.), The Duskin Publishing Group, Inc., Guilford, Connecticut.

 Review of Robert Skidelsky's John Maynard Keynes:  Hopes Betrayed 1883‑1920, vol. 1, published in "Library Journal," September 1986.

 Papers and Colloquia Presented:

"Assessing Student Learning in Macroeconomics:  A Case Study," Midwest Economics Association annual meetings, Chicago, March 2002.

 "Plantation Slavery in the Antebellum South," Faculty Development Committee Faculty Presentation Series, College of St. Benedict, November 1991.

 "Slaves, Mules, and Cotton:  Livestock and Labor Specialization on Antebellum Plantations," Midwest Economics Association annual meetings, Chicago, March 1986; Eastern Economics Association annual meetings, Philadelphia, April 1986.

 "The Men Between:  Slave Drivers on Antebellum Plantations," Department of Economics Colloquium, Xavier University, Spring 1985; Department of Economics, Widener University, February 1985; Department of Economics, University of Puget Sound, February 1984; Economics and History Workshops, DePauw University, October 1982; Economic History and Applied Microeconomic Theory Workshops, Indiana University, October 1982; Department of Economics Colloquium, University of Connecticut, December 1980.

"Plantation Operations and Organization of Slave Labor in the Antebellum South," Department of Economics, College of St. Benedict, March 1985; Rose‑Hulman Institute of Technology, February 1984; Department of Economics Colloquium, University of Connecticut, March 1979.

 "Some Notes on the Occupational Distribution of the Slave Labor Force on Southern Plantations," Workshop in Economic History, Harvard University, April 1977.

 "Clock‑Time vs. Real‑Time:  A Comparison of the Lengths of the Northern and Southern Agricultural Work‑Years," Workshop in Comparative Social History, University of Chicago, May 1976.

 Research‑in‑Progress:

 "Estimates of the Antebellum Plantation Slave Occupational Structure"

 "The Composition of Agricultural Product in the Sub‑Regions of the Antebellum South"

 "An Empirical Analysis of Slave Drivers on Antebellum Plantations"

        additional research topics of interest:
                    empirical analysis of plantation slave occupational structure --
                         temporal changes, age-gender-occupation patters
                     empirical analysis of slave prices and markets
                     draft livestock in antebellum southern agriculture
                     19th and 20th century monetary and financial history
                     18th and 19th century U.S. economic growth

 COURSES TAUGHT:

at College of St. Benedict / St. John's University

Principles of Microeconomics                     Introduction to Economics
Principles of Macroeconomics                    Macroeconomic Theory
Concepts & Issues in Economics               American Economic History
Intermediate Macroeconomic Analysis      Market Structures & Regulation
Money, Banking & Monetary Policy            Economics of Financial Institutions &
Modern U.S. Economic History                        Markets
Monetary Theory & Policy                          Internships in Economics
Economic History of the 1930s                  Research Seminar in Economics
The Bahamian Economy                            First-Year Symposium
                         

at Xavier University

Principles of Microeconomics (including honors sections)
Principles of Macroeconomics
American Economic History                        Microeconomic Analysis
European Economic History                       Industrial Organization
Money and Banking                                   Independent Study in Economics

at the University of Connecticut

Economic History of the U.S.                     Independent Study in Economics
European Economic History
Principles of Microeconomics (including honors sections)
American Economic History (graduate-level)

SERVICE TO DEPARTMENT AND INSTITUTION:

 At the College of St. Benedict/St. John's University:

Chair of the CSB/SJU Department of Economics (2007-2010, 1999-2004, 1987-90)
      responsible for administration of departmental and college policies, budget, hiring and reviews of department faculty, course scheduling, curriculum revision, preparation of departmental reports, department representative in Social Sciences Division
Member of Department Chairs' Consulting Group (2003-2004)
Member Presidential Task Force on Gender (2003-2005)
Director of Undergraduate Research and the Honors Thesis Program (August 2001-January 2002)
       Member Honors Program Council (2001-2002)
Member CSB Rank and Tenure Committee (1998-99, 2000-01, 2014-17) and Chair 2015-17
Parliamentarian, CSB/SJU Faculty Assembly (2005-2013, 1998-2004)
       ex officio Member of the Faculty Governance Coordinating Committee (2001-2004)
Department of Economics Assessment Coordinator (1998-99)
Member Clemens Economics Lecture Committee (1989-94, 1996‑ )
CSB/SJU Learning Enhancement Service New Faculty Mentors Program (1998-99)
Interviewer for Regents'/Trustees' Scholarship Applicants (1997‑99, 2001-03)
Member Truman Scholarship Candidates Screening Committee (1996-99)
Department of Economics Econ 111 Web Course Grant Project (1997-98)
Department of Economics Scholarship Committee (1996-98)
Department of Economics Bibliographer & Library Liasion (1990-98)
Parliamentarian, CSB Faculty/Staff Assembly (1990-98)
Department of Economics representative and presentations at CSB/SJU Admissions Office Campus Visit Day and Business Day Programs (1986-92, 1993-94, 1996-97, 1998, 2001)
Member and Chair CSB/SJU Faculty Goverance Coordinating Committee (1996-97)
Member CSB/SJU Faculty Council on Academic Affairs (1992-93, 1994-96)
       Vice‑Chair (1995-96)
       Member New Course & Core Designation Sub‑Committee (1995-96)
       Member Academic Assessment Sub‑Committee (1992-93, 1994-96)
       Representative to CSB Budget Advisory Committee (1992-93)
       Representative to CSB Assembly Executive Committee (1992-93)
Member CSB/SJU Joint Committee for Academic Computing (1990-96)
       Chair (1993-95)
Member of ad hoc Long‑Range Institutional Computing Planning Committee (1995)
Member CSB/SJU Institutional Strategic Plan Task Team (August 1995)
Member of ad hoc task teams for designing, developing, and drafting CSB/SJU Institutional Academic Assessment Plan (Summers 1993 and 1994)
Consulting Member CSB/SJU Academic Assessment Sub‑Committee (1993‑94)
Member CSB/SJU Joint Calendar Committee (1991‑93)
Member Department of Economics Long‑Range Planning Committee (1991‑93)
Member CSB Educational Policies and Planning Committee (1990‑92)
       Representative to CSB Assembly Executive Committee (1991‑92)
       Member CSB/SJU Joint Educational Policies Committee (1990‑92)
Member CSB ad hoc Task Force for Campus Housing (1990‑92)
Member and Co‑Chair of ad hoc CSB/SJU Joint Academic Integrity Committee (1990‑91)
Member Core Curriculum Social Sciences Disciplinary Committee (1987‑90)
Member CSB/SJU Presidents' Committee for Class Schedule Revision (1988‑89)
Chair of CSB Faculty/Staff Assembly (1988‑89)
       Chair of Executive Committee
       Member Educational Policies and Planning Committee
       Member of CSB/SJU Joint Faculty Committee
       Auditor CSB Board of Trustees
Chair‑Elect of CSB Faculty/Staff Assembly (1987-88)
       Member and Secretary for Executive Committee
       Chair of Nominating Committee
Member CSB Selection Committee for St. Cloud Chamber of Commerce Scholarships (1988)
Member CSB President's Committee to Name New Dormitory ‑‑ Margretta Hall (1988)
Chair of CSB task force to prepare report of Humanities Division departments for North Central reaccreditation (1987‑88)
Member CSB/SJU Joint Core Curriculum Committee (1986‑87)
       Member of Quantitative Reasoning Subcommittee (Summer 1986)
Member CSB/SJU Joint Honors Program Planning Committee (1986‑87)
Department of Economics Placement/Career Services Office Liason (1985‑87)
Edited and submitted revised proposal for CSB faculty handbook on membership and election procedure of CSB Educational Policy and Planning Committee (February‑March 1987)
Prepared copy for CSB/SJU Admissions Office materials (Spring 1986) and made presentation to Admissions staff (August 1987, 1989) on Economics program
Member Department of Economics Curriculum Revision Committee (1985‑86, 1988‑90
Participated with search committees in interviewing job candidates for Clemens Chair in Economics (1986‑87), positions in Economics (1987, 1991, 1996‑99), and positions in Department of Management (1986‑87)
Undergraduate academic advising and registration

 At Xavier University:

Member Board of Undergraduate Studies (1982-84)
Member Department of Economics Common Principles Textbook Review Committee (1983)
Department of Economics representative on College Committee to Review Honors/Scholars Program (1983)
Undergraduate academic advising and registration 

At the University of Connecticut:

Faculty advisor to undergraduate Economics Club and Omicron Delta Epsilon chapter (1979‑81)
Member Department of Economics Graduate Admissions Committee (1977‑80)
Member Department of Economics Promotion, Re‑appointment, and Tenure Committee (1977‑80)
Department of Economics Faculty Secretary (1976‑80)
Committee member & advisor for Master's degree and undergraduate Honors and Distinction candidates in Economics (1979, 1980) and in History (1977, 1979)
Undergraduate academic advising and registration

  

OTHER PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES:

Professional Memberships and Annual Meetings Attended in [ ]:

Economic History Association [1977‑1980, 1984]
Economic History Society ‑ U.K.
Social Science History Association [1990]
The Cliometrics Society
American Economic Association [1975, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1992, 1999, 2001, 2002]
Midwest Economic Association [1985‑discussant, 1986‑paper presented, 1987‑session chair, 1988‑discussant, 1990‑discussant, 1991‑session chair, 1992‑session chair, 1994‑discussant, 1995‑98, 2000‑discussant and session chair, 2002-paper presented and session chair, 2004-discussant and session chair]
Eastern Economic Association [1977, 1986‑paper presented & session chair]
American Association of University Professors (1976‑ )
Member CSB/SJU Chapter Steering Committee (1998‑99) 

Invited Conferences, Seminars, and Workshops Attended:

CSB/SJU Computing Collaboratorium (June 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003)
CSB/SJU Scholarship Workshop (June 1998)
McGraw‑Hill & Robert Morris College Sixth Annual Teaching Economics Conference, Pittsburg, Pa. (February 1995)
Economic Education Winter Institute at St. Cloud State University (February 1986, 1987, 1990‑91, 1995‑2003)
Critical Thinking Workshop for CSB/SJU faculty at SJU (August 1986) and follow‑up session (March 1987)
Banking Seminar for College Faculty, Graduate School of Banking, University of Wisconsin‑Madison (August 1986)
CSB/SJU new Symposium faculty Discussion and Writing Workshops (June 1986, June 1994 presentation, May 2003), monthly Symposium faculty workshops and meetings (1986‑1988, 1989‑1991), and returning Symposium faculty workshops (August 1987, August 1994, October 1995)
Central Banking Seminar, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland (May 1985)
Department of Economics, Duke University Conference, A Symposium on One Kind of  Freedom:   The Economic Consequences of Emancipation by Roger Ransom and Richard Sutch, Durham, N.C. (February 1978)
Mathematical Social Sciences Board ‑‑ University of Rochester Conference on Time on the Cross, Rochester, N.Y. (October 1974).  Paper with Robert W. Fogel, "A Comparison of the Lengths of the Northern and Southern Agriculture Work‑Years," in Robert W. Fogel and Stanley L. Engerman (eds.), Evidence Relevant to the Post‑Publication Debate on "Time on the Cross", volume prepared for the Conference, mimeo, October 1974.


Participant in discussion panels, presented public lectures, and presented invited class lectures on:

The Use of Regression Analysis in Economics (1994)
The Economic Impact of the Baby Boom Generation (1994)
The 1993 Nobel Prizes in Economics (1993)
The Economics of Slavery (1989, 1987, 1981, 1978, 1977, 1976)
An Economic Analysis of Comparable Worth (1986)
What is Economics and What do Economists do? (1985)
The Economics Major and Liberal Arts Education (1985)
The American Banking System (1985)
Macroeconomic Theories of Consumption (1985)
Careers in Economics (1983, 1982)
What is Supply‑Side Economics? (1982)
Reaganomics (1982, 1981)
Inflation and Its Effects (1982)
Property Rights in Economic History (1981)
The New Economic History (1977) 

Additional Professional Activities:

Sabbatical Research Leaves:  Spring 1992, Fall 1999
Attended North Central Association Annual Meetings, Chicago (April 1993, 1994, and 1995)
Attended American Association of Higher Education Conferences on Academic Assessment, Chicago (June 1993), Washington (June 1994)
Member of Consumer Advisory Council, East Central Electric Association (1990‑92)
Member Focus Group of Cultural Pluralism at CSB/SJU (August 1992)
Member Focus Group on Matriculation for CSB McKnight Foundation Grant (Fall 1990)
Participated in CSB/SJU Management Department's Organizational Leadership Program ‑‑ industry computer simulation (1987‑90, 1995‑2000)
Member of CSB/SJU faculty China Study Group (Spring 1987)
Panel member for St. Cloud channel 41 television program, "Perspectives", on the topics of apartheid and dis‑investment in South Africa (December 1985)   This particular panel was selected for taped re‑broadcast (May 1986).
Participant in CSB/SJU faculty discussion group of the book Habits of the Heart (Fall 1985)
Participant in CSB/SJU Economics, Management, and Accounting faculty discussion series, "Gender in the Classroom" (November 1985)
Panel member for television panel discussion of the U.S. Catholic Bishops' pastoral letter Economic Justice for All:  Catholic Social Teaching and the U.S. Economy (Spring 1985)
Member of the Xavier University Faculty Book Group (1984‑1985)
Interviewed for various local television news reports and newspaper articles on current economic events
Reviewed revisons of Economic History textbook for Rand‑McNally (January 1979 and December 1977)
Reviewed National Science Foundation grant proposals (March 1992, December 1977)