Ph.D. Student - Operations Research
Education
- Ph.D. Operations Research (Expected 2027), Georgia Institute of Technology
- Ed.M. Secondary Mathematics Education (2021), Harvard Graduate School of Education
- A.B. Applied Mathematics (2020), Harvard College
About
Olivia Phillips is a Ph.D. student in operations research on the optimization track. Her research focuses on applications of discrete optimization to problems in the education sector, including student transportation policy and university course scheduling and classroom assignment. She is advised by Joel Sokol and Dima Nazzal.
Olivia graduated from Harvard College in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in applied mathematics and a minor in linguistics. She also holds a master’s degree in secondary math education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She taught high school math for two years before beginning her Ph.D., which is where she developed her interest in applying operations research principles to problems in the education sector.
In addition to her research, Olivia is a graduate student instructor for an undergraduate course in engineering optimization and a Graduate Teaching Fellow (GTF), where she helps train teaching assistants and provides teaching feedback for students in the Tech to Teaching program.
Research
Olivia's research focuses on applications of optimization to problems in the education sector, including student transportation policy and university course scheduling.
Teaching
Olivia is passionate about math education. As a former high school teacher, she has a deep love of teaching AP Calculus. As a graduate student, she is excited to teach undergrad students about optimization, since her own intro to optimization course is what made her want to get her Ph.D. in this field.
Representative Publications
“Who gets to ride? Comparing Transportation Eligibility Policies for Saanich Public Schools.” Talk at the INFORMS Annual Meeting, Seattle, WA, October 21, 2024.
“Who gets to ride? Comparing Transportation Eligibility Policies for Saanich Public Schools.” Talk at the IISE Annual Conference, Atlanta, GA, June 1, 2025.
“Who gets to ride? Comparing Transportation Eligibility Policies for Saanich Public Schools.” Talk at the INFORMS Annual Meeting, Atlanta, GA, October 28, 2025.