Darcy Olsen is an American nonprofit executive. She founded GenJustice.org in 2017 to strengthen constitutional rights for abused children in foster care. For 15 years, she served as the chief executive officer of the

Goldwater Institute The Goldwater Institute is a conservative and libertarian public policy think tank located in Phoenix whose stated mission is "to defend and strengthen the freedom guaranteed to all Americans in the constitutions of the United States and all fift ...

.2010 Best of the Capitol awards recipients: Capitol Watchdog Group
''

Arizona Capitol Times The ''Arizona Capitol Times'' is a non-partisan, weekly newspaper covering state politics and government published every Friday in Phoenix, Arizona. The paper focuses on the Arizona Legislature, the state's politicians, government agencies and e ...

'' In 2015, she published''The Right to Try: How the Federal Government Prevents Americans from Getting the Lifesaving Treatments They Need.''

Early life and education

Darcy Ann Olsen was born in Bennington, Vermont. Until she was ten years old, she and her family resided in

Hoosick Falls, New York Hoosick Falls is a village in Rensselaer County, New York, United States. The population was 3,501 at the 2010 census. During its peak, in 1900, the village had a population of approximately 7,000. The village of Hoosick Falls is near the center ...

. Her family then moved to Richfield, Utah. Olsen attended high school in

St. George, Utah St. George is a city in and the county seat of Washington County, Utah, United States. Located in southwestern Utah on the Arizona border, it is the principal city of the St. George Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). The city lies in the northe ...

, where she was active in student groups. In 1989, Olsen received a scholarship to attend the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

in Washington, D.C. While attending classes, Olsen also worked as a drug counselor and transition house manager for the

Coalition for the Homeless A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...

. In 1993, Olsen earned a bachelor of science degree from Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. Then she enrolled in graduate school at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

. She earned a master's degree in international education in 1995 after studying foreign educational systems with an emphasis in developing countries of North Africa.

Career

After graduating from NYU, Olsen moved back to Utah and worked as a copywriter and editor for Weber State University. A year later, she returned to Washington, D.C. in a similar role for the

Cato Institute The Cato Institute is an American libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Ed Crane, Murray Rothbard, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries.Koch Indust ...

, a

libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...

think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...

Cato Institute

Olsen's first report for Cato"The Advancing Nanny State: Why the Government Should Stay Out of Child Care"
Cato Institute focused on an anticipated proposal from President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

's administration to significantly expand the federal government's role in providing child care for American families. Two years later, Olsen wrote a new report"Universal Preschool Is No Golden Ticket: Why Government Should Not Enter the Preschool Business"
Cato Institute about proposals in a variety of states to provide universal preschool because of claims that at-risk children need a stable instructional environment at earlier ages to be successful in school as they get older. In her review of the available scientific research, Olsen wrote that government-sponsored early childhood education provides no lasting improvement in the average student's learning skills or chances for success later.

Goldwater Institute

Olsen moved to Phoenix in 2001 to lead the

, a conservative and libertarian public policy think tank. Olsen left the Goldwater Institute in July 2017 after serving as its CEO for 15 years. The Arizona Capital Times reported she was ousted by the board.

Honors and awards

She was named one of Arizona's top Women in Public Policy"Women in Public Policy"
, Goldwater Institute and one of the Phoenix Business Journal's Power Players in 2006, and one of Phoenix's Forty Under 40 in 2009."Forty Under 40, Class of 2009"
, '' Phoenix Business Journal'' She also received the

Roe Award The Roe Award is an annual award given by the State Policy Network that "pays tribute to those in the state public policy movement whose achievements have greatly advanced the free market philosophy" and "recognizes leadership, innovation and acco ...

, offered by the State Policy Network for outstanding achievements in advancing free-market philosophies. In 2014, she received the Bradley Prize, awarded each year by the

Bradley Foundation The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, commonly known as the Bradley Foundation, is an American charitable foundation (charity), foundation based in Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that primarily supports Conservatism in the United States, cons ...

. In 2019, Olsen was the first winner of the Gregor G. Peterson Prize in Venture Philanthropy. She was selected from a pool of more than 60 nonprofits nationally.

Personal life

Olsen is a foster mother who has adopted four children through the foster care system. She has written columns for national newspapers including ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'' and ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'' and appeared on public affairs television programs across the country including '' The O'Reilly Factor'', ''

The Dennis Miller Show ''The Dennis Miller Show'' is an American syndicated late-night talk show created by and starring comedian Dennis Miller. The show launched in January 1992 and was hosted by the former ''Saturday Night Live'' Weekend Update anchor as an attempt b ...

'' and '' Inside Politics''.

Glenn Beck Glenn Lee Beck (born February 10, 1964) is an American conservative political commentator, radio host, entrepreneur, and television producer. He is the CEO, founder, and owner of Mercury Radio Arts, the parent company of his television and rad ...

included Olsen's thoughts"The Importance of Limited Government Power
(Special for Glenn Beck's American Revival), Goldwater Institute in his 2009-10 American Revival Tour."Glenn Beck's American Revival"
, glennbeck.com

References

External links

*
Generation Justice
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Olsen, Darcy Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American women chief executives Walsh School of Foreign Service alumni New York University alumni People from Hoosick Falls, New York People from Richfield, Utah People from St. George, Utah 21st-century American women