Joel Hicks, Ph.D

Dr. Joel Hicks teaches public policy analysis at the University of Virginia’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies. He brings experience as an educator, researcher, elected local official and retired U.S. Navy commander to his study of how governments identify public problems, evaluate alternatives and translate policy decisions into action. His teaching emphasizes practical analysis, evidence-informed decision-making and the challenges of working across institutions and navigating competing perspectives.

Hicks is a visiting assistant professor in the University of Oregon’s School of Planning, Public Policy and Management, where he teaches policy analysis, quantitative methods, and energy and climate policy. Previously, he was a research professor at George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government and a research fellow at its Center for Energy Science and Policy. He also lectures at Johns Hopkins University’s Energy Policy and Climate Program. His research examines energy and climate governance and the behavioral dimensions of public policy. He is co-authoring “Governance of Energy and Climate Policy,” a textbook scheduled for publication in 2027.

His public service includes a four-year term on the Carlisle Borough Council in Pennsylvania. As chair of the borough’s Climate Action Commission, he helped develop and secure adoption of Carlisle’s first Climate Action Plan in 2021. That experience informs his teaching on stakeholder engagement, political feasibility and the opportunities and constraints local policymakers face.

During his Navy career, Hicks served in the nuclear submarine community and held assignments in defense space acquisition and operations. His final active-duty assignment was as deputy director of the Joint Space Operations Center at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.

Hicks earned a Ph.D. in public policy from George Mason University. He also holds master’s degrees in electrical engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School, in national security and strategic studies from the Naval War College, and in international science and technology policy from George Washington University, where he also earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering.