Director of the Peace Corps is an alumnus and a former visiting professor of the School of Social Work.
The Health Sciences and Human Services Library is celebrating Women’s History Month by featuring women of UMB on its blog and in The Elm.
Jody Olsen, PhD, MSW '72, began her career with the Peace Corps more than 50 years ago as a volunteer in Tunisia, where she taught English after graduating from the University of Utah in 1965. She remained in Tunisia until 1968, when she returned to the United States and made Baltimore her home.
Olsen earned her Master of Social Work degree from the University of Maryland School of Social Work in 1972 and her PhD in Human Development in 1979 from the University of Maryland, College Park. After earning her PhD, Olsen continued her work with the Peace Corps as country director for Togo, a position she held until 1981 when she became rgional director for North Africa, the Near East, Asia, and the Pacific, holding this position until 1984. Olsen continued her leadership positions in the Peace Corps as chief of staff from 1989 to 1992 and deputy and acting director from 2002 to 2009. In 2018, she was nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate as the director of the Peace Corps.
Olsen also served the University of Maryland, Baltimore for many years as a visiting professor in the School of Social Work. Her research interests and coursework have included international social work, global social policy, and issues in global women and children’s health.
Olsen has organized social work student research trips to Malawi and has served as director of the Center for Global Education Initiatives and a co-chair of the Global Health Interprofessional Council. She represents a current UMB woman leader making an impressive impact both within the University and around the world.