Lynn Olson

Lynn Olson worked in the K-12 program at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation from 2008 to 2017, serving as a senior program officer, senior adviser to the director, and deputy director for knowledge management and strategic alliances. Prior to joining the foundation, Olson was an award-winning writer and editor for over two decades at the national newspaper Education Week, and earlier in her career she was a writer, editor, and policy analyst at the Children’s Defense Fund in Washington, D.C. She is a graduate of Yale University.

Work by Lynn Olson

None of the Above: A New Vision for State Standardized Testing

A blueprint proposing a new role for state standardized tests that aims to promote high standards, enhance transparency for policymakers and parents, and strongly emphasize teaching and learning.

States Strategies for Scaling the Science of Reading

A commentary on states adopting science-of-reading policies and practices

The Reading Revolution: How States are Scaling Literacy Reform

A report on state legislative and policy changes to promote better literacy instruction

Teachers Like Us: Strategies for Increasing Educator Diversity

A report outlining the research and recommendations for building a more diverse teacher workforce

A New Bipartisan Education Agenda

A blueprint for new secondary and post-secondary pathways, based on students’ passions and purposes

Invisible Students: The Information Crisis in Early Education

How to build stronger early learning systems post-pandemic

How D.C. Public Schools Improved Teacher Quality, Diversity

Many states and school districts are working to bolster their teacher workforces as educators endure a third school year under the pandemic…

Changing the Narrative: The Push for New Equity Measures in Education

The movement to introduce new indicators of school performance