Jane E. Palmer is an associate professor in the Department of Justice, Law and Criminology at American University in Washington, DC. She oversees American University’s certificate program in community-based research and is the founder and former director of the Community-Based Research Scholars program. Before receiving her doctoral degree, Palmer worked for nearly a decade in nonprofit organizations in Chicago and St. Louis as an advocate, social worker, program manager, and executive director, with an emphasis on eradicating violence.

Palmer is a quantitative and qualitative researcher with areas of expertise related to community-engaged methods, research on sensitive topics, survey research methods, anti-oppressive research methods, and issues related to gender-based violence. She regularly teaches research methods, statistics, and social policy–oriented courses to undergraduate and graduate students. At American University, she serves as an Inclusive Pedagogy Fellow and is affiliated with the Antiracist Research and Policy Center; the Metropolitan Policy Center; the Department of Critical, Race, Gender, & Culture Studies; and the Department of Sociology. 

She currently works as a consultant on a research project with American Indian Development Associates.

Palmer holds a PhD. in justice, law, and society with a concentration in public policy from American University, a master’s degree in social work from the Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois Chicago, and a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Smith College.