Education

• PhD University of Iowa
• MA Western Illinois University
• BA Mount Mercy College

About

Chad Loes is Professor of Criminal Justice, Chair of the Department of History, Politics, and Justice, and Director of Student Outcomes Research at Mount Mercy University.

He teaches a variety of courses such as senior seminar, diversity and the criminal justice system, and research methodology. He held the Thomas R. Feld Endowed Chair for Teaching Excellence and has served as a reviewer for the Higher Learning Commission. His student outcomes work includes conducting quantitative studies on how Mount Mercy’s students develop on dimensions of growth associated with the institution’s mission and goals.

Loes’s criminal justice research centers on diversity issues, juveniles, and citizen attitudes towards the criminal justice system. Specifically, he has conducted research on in-service multicultural training among Iowa police departments, adolescent self-harm, and citizen perceptions of police effectiveness. He is currently leading multiple studies on a range of topics associated with adolescents.

His higher education research focuses on how college affects students. Formerly affiliated with the Center for Research on Undergraduate Education at The University of Iowa, he continues to write on an array of college impact topics. Broadly, his work examines cognitive development/critical thinking, effective instructional approaches, and student persistence. His research on diversity and critical thinking was cited in amicus briefs for the U.S. Supreme Court cases Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin and Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College. He has presented his research at numerous international and domestic conferences, and he has also worked as a research consultant for the U.S. government.

Loes's research can be found on his Google Scholar profile.