Joseph P. Overton

Joseph Paul Overton (January 4, 1960 – June 30, 2003) was an American think-tank executive who served as the senior vice president of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. He is best known for his work in the mid-1990s developing an idea since known as the Overton window.

Biography Overton was born in Southwestern Michigan. In 1965, his family moved to Midland, Michigan, for a job with the Dow Chemical Company. He graduated from Herbert Henry Dow High School in 1978.

He held a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Michigan Technological University and a Juris Doctor degree from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School at Western Michigan University.

Overton was admitted to the State Bar of Michigan in 1994. He was appointed to the Michigan Appellate Defender Commission by Governor John Engler. His appointment was recommended by the Michigan Supreme Court. That idea eventually became known as the Overton window, and his lasting legacy.

He died at age 43 from injuries suffered in a crash while piloting an ultralight aircraft, soon after taking off from Tuscola Area Airport near Caro, Michigan. Overton had married on March 29, 2003, only a few months before the accident.

Shortly after his death, he was honored by the State Policy Network with the creation of the Overton Award, a special distinction. It is bestowed infrequently and limited to COOs or Executive VPs of non-profit, free market organizations who demonstrate the personal qualities that Overton possessed. These include humility in supporting their peers, leadership that builds a great team, and developing effective strategies that magnify the ideas and influence of their organization. The Overton Award has been awarded only six times since its inception in 2003.