Greg Thorson is the Ken and Lynn Hall Endowed Chair of Public Policy and Professor of Government at the University of Redlands. His work focuses on public policy, education policy, and health care policy, with a strong emphasis on quantitative and advanced quantitative methods. His research examines the consequences of economic inequality, school finance reforms, and the “politics and policies of despair,” and he regularly connects empirical findings to live policy debates through legislative testimony, media commentary, and public scholarship.
Research & Teaching Specialties
Academic & Administrative Positions
Faculty Positions
- Ken and Lynn Hall Endowed Chair of Public Policy, University of Redlands (2008 – present)
- Professor of Government, University of Redlands (2010 – present)
- Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Minnesota, Morris (2001 – 2008)
- Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of Minnesota, Morris (1995 – 2001)
Administrative Roles
- Co-Creator and Co-Director, Master of Public Policy and Administration (MPPA), University of Redlands (2021 – present)
- Creator and Director, Public Policy Major (Undergraduate), University of Redlands (2013 – 2019)
- Chair, Political Science Department, University of Minnesota, Morris (1996 – 2007)
Education
-
Ph.D., Political Science, University of California, Riverside (1995).
Major areas: American Political Institutions; American Political Processes. Minor area: Research Methods. - M.A., Political Science, University of California, Riverside (1993).
- B.A., Political Science, Augsburg College, Minneapolis, MN (1988), Magna Cum Laude.
Public Scholarship & Communication
The Policy Scientist
The Policy Scientist (Founder and Editor), 2024–present.
A research-based public policy platform synthesizing peer-reviewed findings for academic, professional,
and policymaking audiences. The site features extended article reviews curated from leading policy and
economics journals, emphasizing causal inference, evidence quality, and the substantive implications of
research for education, health, and social policy.
Website: www.thepolicyscientist.com
Selected Publications
Selected Peer-Reviewed Articles & Book Chapters
- Thorson, Gregory R. and Sera M. Gearhart. 2019. “Do Enhanced Funding Policies Targeting Students in Poverty Close Achievement Gaps? Evidence from the American States, 1990–2015.” Journal of Poverty & Public Policy 11: 205–221. https://doi.org/10.1002/pop4.253
- Thorson, Gregory R. and Sera M. Gearhart. 2018. “The Adverse Effects of Economic Inequality on Educational Outcomes: An Examination of PISA Scores, 2000–2015.” World Affairs (September): 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1177/0043820018799425
- Thorson, Gregory R. 2015. “Should You Choose a Career in Public Policy?” In Kishor Vaidya (ed.), Public Policy for the Curious: Why Study Public Policy. Curious Academic Publishing.
- Thorson, Gregory R. and Matthew H. Gutierrez. 2012. “Using Clickers to Enhance the Classroom Experience.” The Western 4(1): 5–13.
- Thorson, Gregory R., Tasina Nitzschke, and Nicholas J. Maxwell. 2007. “Testing the Three Theories of Legislative Organization: An Examination of Rule Assignments during the Postreform Period.” Congress and the Presidency 34(2): 23–34.
- Stambough, Stephen J. and Gregory R. Thorson. 1999. “Towards Stability in Presidential Forecasting: The Development of a Multiple Indicator Model.” International Journal of Forecasting 15: 143–152.
- Thorson, Gregory R. 1998. “Divided Government and the Passage of Partisan Legislation, 1947–1990.” Political Research Quarterly 51(3): 751–764.
- Thorson, Gregory R. and Stephen J. Stambough. 1995. “Anti-Incumbency and the 1992 Elections: The Changing Face of Presidential Coattails.” Journal of Politics 57(1): 210–220.
Selected Policy Reports & Community-Based Research
- Thorson, Gregory R. and Matthew H. Gutierrez. 2012. “Should We Wait for Superman? Evaluating the Performance of Charter Schools in the Greater Los Angeles Area.” Final grant report published by the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation.
- Thorson, Gregory R. et al. 2008. “Towards a Better Understanding of Rural Homelessness: An Examination of Housing Crisis in a Small, Rural Minnesota Community.” Center for Small Towns.
- Thorson, Gregory R. and Jessica Anderson. 2006. “The Minnesota Miracle Abandoned? Changes in Minnesota School Funding, 2001–2007.” Rural Minnesota Journal.
- Thorson, Gregory R. and Zoe Wong. 2004. “Resource Distribution and Rural Minnesota Schools.” Consortium Connections.
- Additional book reviews, strategic plans, and community reports are listed in the full curriculum vitae.
A full publication list, including book reviews and additional reports, is available in the complete curriculum vitae.
Selected Grants & Fellowships
-
Dean’s Academic Opportunities Project Grant (2021–2022).
Creation of a new Master of Public Policy and Administration (MPPA) within the College of Arts and Sciences. -
Ken and Lynn Hall Policy Network Research Fellow (2022–2023).
Project on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on higher education. -
Ken and Lynn Hall Policy Network Scholarly Seed Grants (2018, 2019).
Projects on the politics and policies of despair and on the effectiveness of school finance reforms in closing achievement gaps. -
Haynes Foundation Faculty Fellowship Grant (2011–2012).
“Should We Wait for Superman? Evaluating the Performance of Charter Schools in the Greater Los Angeles Area.” -
Otto Bremer Foundation Grant (2006–2007).
$44,000 to support the formation of a Health Care Purchasing Alliance in a 12-county region of West Central Minnesota. - Multiple additional grants from foundations, universities, and public agencies supporting research on school finance, health care access, spatial analysis, online learning, and service-learning initiatives.
Teaching
Graduate Courses (MPPA)
- Public Policy Analysis
- Advanced Regression Techniques
- Causal Inference
- Program Evaluation
- Education Policy
- Integrating Research Findings into Practice
Undergraduate Courses
- First Year Seminar: The High Social Costs of Rising Economic Inequality
- Comparative Public Policy (Salzburg 2022 and 2025)
- Education Law
- American National Government and Politics
- Applied & Advanced Data Analysis in the Social Sciences
- Introduction to Public Policy Analysis
- Advanced Seminars on Presidential and Judicial Policym