Policy Studies Program
307 Ramer History House
718 Sullivan Road
Lafayette College
Easton, PA 18042

Mark Crain is the William E. Simon Professor of Political Economy at Lafayette College and Chair of the Policy Studies program.  In addition to teaching and research, his duties include strategic planning, curriculum development, faculty oversight and recruitment, and fundraising.  He has published over 100 articles and 7 books in the fields of economics and political science. 
His recent book, Volatile States, analyzes the evolution of public policy and its impact on economic and fiscal performance in the American States.

Dr. Crain came to Lafayette College in 2004 from George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia where he had been a faculty member with teaching and administrative duties since 1982.  As Director of the Center for Study of Public Choice, Dr. Crain lead one of the world’s most productive academic enterprises.  Dr. Crain also served as Director of the Economics Graduate Program at George Mason, developing and implementing the University’s first Ph.D. program in the College of Arts and Sciences.  His prior academic positions were at UCLA and Virginia Tech.

Dr. Crain served as Assistant to the Director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, a Senior Executive Service position, while on leave from George Mason.  He routinely represented and briefed the Director on actions related to economic, spending, and revenue forecasts, regulatory decision-making, agency budget requests, legislative deliberations on appropriations bills, and institutional reforms.  Dr. Crain also served as co-author of the transition report on the US Department of Energy for the first Bush Administration.  For the Commonwealth of Virginia, Dr. Crain served as a Trustee of the $40 billion Virginia Retirement System and chaired its Audit and Compliance Committee.  In total, his federal and state level public service over 20 years includes work on a variety of topics including budgeting, energy, regulation, GPS, transportation, and finance.

Dr. Crain holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Texas A & M University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of Houston.  He resides in Easton, Pennsylvania with his wife and two children, and enjoys guitar, tennis, and jogging.

Julie O’Brien is the administrative assistant for the Policy Studies Program working with W. Mark Crain, Simon Professor of Political Economy. Ms. O’Brien is responsible for managing the program’s events, communications, and budget.

Ms. O’Brien joins Lafayette from GoldenTree Asset Management, L.P., a Manhattan based asset management company. Ms. O’Brien was a senior member of the marketing and client service team responsible for monthly, quarterly, and yearly performance reporting, investor due diligence, management and implementation of a client relationship management system, assisting in the launch and closing of the company’s funds, developing and maintaining investor relationships, and maintaining the financial aspects of the company website.

Prior to joining GoldenTree, Ms. O’Brien was the head of client service at Promethean Asset Management LLC in Manhattan where she was responsible for the structure and development of a marketing and client service platform implemented to improve client servicing, marketing administration, internal controls, reporting, accounting and compliance. Prior to joining Promethean, Ms. O’Brien was a marketing associate at The Palladin Group, L.P. formerly located in Maplewood, New Jersey where she was responsible for investor relations and marketing compliance.

Ms. O’Brien holds a B.A. in Finance from Marymount University in Arlington, Virginia. She resides in Easton, Pennsylvania with her husband and son.