Samuel Scott Olens (born July 8, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician who served as

Attorney General of Georgia The attorney general of Georgia is a statewide elected attorney and legal advisor for the executive branch of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. They are a constitutional officer responsible for providing opinions on legal questions ...

. Olens was elected Georgia AG in 2010, resigning on November 1, 2016 (two years prior to the end of his term), following his appointment as President of

Kennesaw State University Kennesaw State University (KSU) is a public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia with two campuses in the Atlanta metropolitan area, one in the Kennesaw area and the other in Marietta on a combined of land. The school was founded ...

. He subsequently resigned as KSU's president on February 15, 2018 and then served as counsel for Dentons global law firm. He was named partner Dentons' Public Policy practice in 2021. Prior to his election as Attorney General, Olens served as chairman of the

Cobb County, Georgia Cobb County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, and is a core county of the Atlanta metropolitan area in the north-central portion of the state. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 766, ...

Commission from 1998 through 2010. He defeated former

district attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

Ken Hodges in the 2010 state elections for Attorney General, becoming the first

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

to win a statewide, partisan race in Georgia. Following Olens's resignation announcement, Christopher M. Carr was appointed as his successor by

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Nathan Deal John Nathan Deal (born August 25, 1942) is an American politician and former lawyer who served as the 82nd governor of Georgia from 2011 to 2019. A Republican, he previously served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Deal served ...

Early life and education

Olens was born in

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, and raised in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

and

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from the

Emory University School of Law Emory University School of Law is the law school of Emory University, a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. It was founded in 1916 and was the first law school in Georgia to be granted membership in the American Association of Law ...

in 1983.

Career

Politics

He was elected to the

Cobb County Cobb County is a county in the U.S. state of Georgia, and is a core county of the Atlanta metropolitan area in the north-central portion of the state. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 766,149. It is the state's third most populous cou ...

Commission in 1998, serving until 2010. He was the commission's chairman from 2002 to 2010. Since 2004, he has served as the chair of the

Atlanta Regional Commission The Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) is the regional planning and intergovernmental coordination agency for the metro Atlanta, Georgia, United States, spanning the 11-county area of Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth ...

. In 2009, he stepped down from that position. Olens defeated state senator Preston Smith to win the Republican nomination for attorney general. In the general election, he defeated former Dougherty County

District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

Ken Hodges. Olens joined forces with legislators to advocate for a stronger human trafficking law in Georgia. HB 200 went into effect on July 1, 2011. Olens worked alongside legislators to pass a re-write of Georgia's Open Meetings and Open Records Laws. HB 397 was the result in the 2012 legislative session, and was signed by Gov. Nathan Deal on April 17, 2012. Olens delivered a primetime address on national healthcare reform and federal regulatory overreach to the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the Republican Party in the United States. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal o ...

in Tampa on August 29, 2012.

President of Kennesaw State

In mid-September 2016, sources close to the

University System of Georgia The University System of Georgia (USG) is the government agency that includes 26 public institutions of higher learning in the U.S. state of Georgia. The system is governed by the Georgia Board of Regents. It sets goals and dictates gener ...

(USG) leaked information that Olens might be on a short list to appointment as president of

, in Kennesaw, Georgia. The university's previous president, Dr. Daniel S. Papp, retired on May 10, 2016, and the University System of Georgia's Chief Academic Officer Dr. Houston Davis was appointed as acting president pending a replacement. Many university staff and student groups objected to the potential appointment, citing Olens's lack of university experience, previous support of Georgia's controversial attempt to ban

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...

, the lack of a national search, and the lack of accountability and transparency in the process through which Sam Olens was chosen. This resulted in multiple campus protests, petitions, and letters from staff to the University System of Georgia administrators. On October 3, 2016, Hank Huckaby, the Chancellor of the University System of Georgia, sent an open letter to all faculty and students of Kennesaw State University with a confirmation that Olens was indeed being considered for the role of president. On October 4, 2016, Olens participated in an "open interview" before a USG open session of the Board of Regents’ Executive and Compensation Committee, at which time he formally requested the job. Later that afternoon, the USG Chancellor once again notified the Kennesaw State University of the status of Olens's request via email, minutes before a protest, to ask that the university community keep an open mind. Included in the email was a letter from Olens to the Board, in which Olens specifically cited his previous experience as Cobb County Commissioner and his ties to the community. The Board voted on the matter on October 12, 2016, and Olens became Kennesaw State's fourth president under a unanimous vote. His tenure officially began on November 1, 2016. A formal complaint was filed to the

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a federal agency that was established via the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to administer and enforce civil rights laws against workplace discrimination. The EEOC investigates discrimination ...

by several faculty members who believe that discrimination was evident in Olen's appointment, as three women applied to the position but were apparently not considered. On December 14, 2017, Olens announced his resignation after bowing to behind-the-scenes pressure from conservative Georgia politicians and mishandling protests by cheerleaders.

Electoral history

References

External links

Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens
''official state government site''
Sam Olens
at

Project Vote Smart Vote Smart, formerly called Project Vote Smart, is an American non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States. It covers candidates and elected offic ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olens, Sam 1957 births American University alumni Emory University School of Law alumni Georgia (U.S. state) attorneys general Georgia (U.S. state) Republicans Jewish American people in Georgia (U.S. state) politics Presidents of Kennesaw State University Living people People from Cobb County, Georgia Politicians from Miami 21st-century American Jews Jewish state legislators in Georgia (U.S. state)