User:Greg Allen Olsen

Professor Greg Allen Olsen

Greg was born on July 25, 1951 the son of Kyrre and Marion Davison Olsen. Love of Washington Island in Wisconsin. One of the best educators, missed by thousands.Greg Allen Olsen, 55, of Oshkosh, died on Wednesday, May 30, 2007

"When choosing a residence the three most important things are location, location and location." I was raised in Shorewood, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee near the home of the late U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Rhenquist and at our home on Washington Island. During and after my college years I moved to several neighborhoods of Milwaukee's inner city where I experienced the challenges of poverty, homelessness, and high crime rate on a daily (and nightly)basis. My experience during these years was a major factor in preparing me for my research studies in Milwaukee and ongoing projects while teaching at UW-Oshkosh.

"What affects labor, affects the US." Abraham Lincoln I owned and conducted my own business for six years and employed two part-time employees. During my work history, I labored in several factories including a foundry, and was a member of three different labor unions. As a social worker I worked with the mentally challenged for approximately five years (in a clinic, halfway house, and as a psychotherapist). In 1978, one of the facilities in which I worked won the national aware for transitional living facilities. The award was presented to us by the Vice-President of the United States, Spirow Agnew.

RESEARCH EMPLOYMENT

          Milwaukee Police Department: 2 years - a study on domestic violence for the U.S. government which pioneered the mandatory arrest law for  the U.S. (1987-88)
           International Foundation for Employee Benefits: researched and assisted in the publication of employee benefit articles. (1986)
           Wisconsin Gas Company: 2 year research study on delinquent gas payments and disconnects. (1984-86)

EDUCATION Research and practical knowledge + education = quality teaching. BA - from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. MA - from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Additional research and two courses toward PhD degree.

During my professional career, I have interviewed approximately 5000 people. During and after the decade of research employment mentioned above, I specialized in sexual assault cases. I not only conducted interviews with a broad sampling of U.S. judges and officials, including the Minister of Justice in Laos and the judge/advisor to the President of Brazil, but also as a result of my research, I have given opinions and taken the stand as an expert witness in court.

My research activities also involved going into South Central Los Angeles just after the riots of April, 1992 to video tape interviews with neighborhood residents. In addition, I conducted two separate research studies which focused on health care concepts and procedures. The first study entailed distributing 300 questionnaires inquiring about expectations and satisfaction of universal health care by AFL-CIO workers in eastern Wisconsin. The second study involved personal interviews with the admission directors of three hospitals regarding their procedures for refusing admittance of emergency cases to their emergency rooms.

TRAVEL

'Don't tell me how educated you are or how old you are. Tell me how much you have traveled and I will tell you how much you know.' Mohammed, Prophet of Islam I have visited over 30 different countries which included several underdeveloped countries. I have experienced extraordinary living conditions in several of these nations from the jungles of South America and Asia to the high villages of the Andes. I have also traveled extensively throughout the U.S. and toured Europe on a motorcycle.

CONCLUSION "Life is a daring adventure or nothing." - Helen Keller I have been in sociology from the beginning of my academic career - my first year in college - and have been living and studying sociology for over 30 years. I chose sociology over all of the other sciences because it is the science of the people - a science which focuses on and is driven to understanding the essence of an equitable, civil social system. Consequently, you can see from the above bio, that I have first hand living experiences of poverty conditions of an inner core of a major urban city; of foreign travel throughout the world by motorcycle, jeep, bus and plane; working and conducting research in health care, legal systems and more - a first hand knowledge of a wide variety of living conditions and social systems. As a sociologist and scientist, I believe that people - "our" people - are life's adventure. If you allow yourself this adventure, sociology will take you there and equip you to interpret and act upon today's problems.

COURSES TAUGHT

Introduction to Sociology, Modern Social Problems, Sociology of Law, Sociology of the Family, Sociology of Mental Disorder, Sociology of Deviance, Minority Groups, Ethnicity and Demography in Wisconsin, Juvenile Delinquency, Population Problems, Criminology, Organizational Management, and Industrial Psychology.

PAPERS PRESENTED AND COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTS Contributed to and helped organize the Earth Charter Community Summit on the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh campus. September, 2002. "Educational Sociology through Natural Science: The Relativity of Social Time and Space." Paper presented at the Joint Meetings of the Wisconsin Sociological Association and Illinois Sociological Association. October, 2001. "Do Some Women Lie About Their Sexual Encounters?" A 45 minute video presented at the North Central Sociological Meetings held in Cleveland, Ohio. April, 1998. "A Cross Cultural Analysis of Sexual Assault: An Interview with the Laotian Minister of Justice." Paper presented at the North Central Sociological Meetings held in Indianapolis, Indiana. April, 1997. "Laos: Marriage in an Impoverished Country." Paper presented at the Joint Meetings of the Wisconsin Sociological Association and Illinois Sociological Association. October, 1997. "Sexual Assault: Interview with Wisconsin Judges, Lawyers and a Witness." Paper presented at the Wisconsin Sociological Association Meetings in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. October, 1996. "A Profile of False Sexual Assault Allegations: An Analysis of Case Studies." Paper presented at the North Central Sociological Meetings held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. April, 1996. Discussant and Chair for the session, "Sociological Potpourri," at the Wisconsin Sociological Association Meetings. October, 1995. "An Empirical Study of Androgyny." Paper jointly presented with Donald Martin at the Joint Meetings of the Wisconsin Sociological Association and Illinois Sociological Association. October, 1993. Presented the findings of health care research to a legislative committee which was traveling around the state of Wisconsin in response to a Democratic-sponsored bill to create a universal health care program for Wisconsin: Milwaukee, Wisconsin in August, 1993 and Green Bay, Wisconsin in July, 1993. "Community Under Siege: South Central Los Angeles." Paper presented at the North Central Sociological Meetings held in Dearborn, Michigan. April, 1993. "A Demand for Universal Health Care: AFL-CIO Workers from the 6th District of Wisconsin." Paper presented at the AFL-CIO 6th District Headquarters. February, 1993. "Totalitarianism and a Government Which Denies the Majority's Wishes for a Universal Health Care System." Paper presented at the Wisconsin Sociological Association Meetings in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. October, 1992. "AFL-CIO Union Member Attitudes Toward Government Support and Health Care Issues." Paper presented at the North Central Sociological Meetings held in Dearborn, Michigan. April, 1992. "In the Best Interest of the Court." Paper presented at the North Central Sociological Meetings held in Dearborn, Michigan. April, 1992. "Maximizing Students' Capacity to Learn Through Inner Competition." Paper presented at the North Central Sociological Meetings held in Dearborn, Michigan. April, 1991.

PUBLICATIONS Assisted in the writing of chapter eleven for, Social Problems, (9th ed.), by D. Stanley Eitzen and Maxine Baca Zinn. My name appears in the acknowledgements of their 2003 edition. A Book review for "The Wisconsin Sociologist," (Pg.212-14) Vol.35; No.2/3; 1998: Sociology (6th ed.), by Richard Schaefer and Robert Lamm. A Book review for "The Wisconsin Sociologist," (Pg.41-22 Vol.30; No.1; 1993: Corporation Crime, Corporate Violence, by Nancy K. Frank and Michael J. Lynch. Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.39-40) Vol.10; No.2; 1985: literature review entitled, "Comparing Pension Increases with Inflation." Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.40) Vol.10; No.2; 1985: literature review entitled, "Unfunded Vested Liability of Multiemployer Benefits." Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.40-41) Vol.10; No.2; 1985: literature review entitled, "Retirement Income Transition Trends." Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.41-42) Vol.10; No.2; 1985: literature review entitled, "Pension Benefits for Surviving Spouses." Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.42) Vol.10; No.2; 1985: literature review entitled, "New Forces Molding Collective Bargaining." Assistant writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.27-8) Vol.10; No.3; 1985: literature review entitled, "Evaluating Pension Accruals for Post-65 Workers." Assistant writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.28-9) Vol.10; No.3; 1985: literature review entitled, "An Overview of Workers' Compensation - 1982." Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.28-9) Vol.10; No.3; 1985: literature review entitled, "An Overview of Workers' Compensation - 1982." Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.22-3) Vol.10; No.4; 1985: literature review entitled, "Employees Undervalue Health Benefits." Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.23) Vol.10; No.4; 1985: literature review entitled, "Implications of Pension Underfunding in the Public Sector." Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.24-5) Vol.10; No.4; 1985: literature review entitled, "A New Look at Partial Retirement." Assistant researcher and writer for the "International Foundation Employee Benefits Journal," (Pg.23-4) Vol.11; No.1; 1985: literature review entitled, "Asset Holding of Recent Retirees."