Michael Furlong, Distinguished Professor Emeritus at UC Santa Barbara’s Gevirtz School, has been appointed to the board of GLEN (Global English) World, a nonprofit on a mission to scale English literacy so that every child has access to the educational and economic opportunities it unlocks. GLEN World is embarking on a multi-year strategic plan focusing on school readiness for young English Learners, with the goal of scaling our impact first locally in Santa Barbara County and the rest of California, and then nationwide and internationally.
Furlong’s association with GLEN World goes back several years. He provided critical guidance regarding the content design and pilot deployments towards its goal of helping young English Learners get ready for kindergarten. Furlong says, “I am so excited to support GLEN World’s much-needed efforts supporting the growth of preschool children’s foundational language and literacy skills that are so vital to their life-long academic and life success.”
Professor Upamanyu Madhow, GLEN World’s co-founder and President, said, “At GLEN World, we have spent the last eight years researching and testing digital content helping children get from ‘zero to reading.’ Donna [fellow new board member Donna Barranco Fisher] and Mike join us as we are about to release GLEN Learn, an app for personalized learning aligned with school readiness standards such as KSEP and DRDP, as iOS and Android mobile apps. They are passionate advocates of our vision that every child gets to school ready to learn, and with their help, we are building partnerships to make sure our work reaches the children in our community who need a helping hand at the very beginning of their academic journey.”
Michael Furlong has recently been named a UC Santa Barbara Edward A. Dickson Emeriti Professor for 2021-2022. He is also interim co-dean emeritus of the Gevirtz School. Furlong served as Associate Dean for Research of the Gevirtz School (2016-18) and as a Professor and Chair in the Department of Counseling, Clinical, and School Psychology. He taught in the GGSE from 1982-1985 and 1990-2018. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association (Division 16, School Psychology) and the American Educational Research Association. Between 2008-2015 he was the Editor of the Journal of School Violence and co-edited three volumes of the Handbook of Positive Psychology in the Schools (2009, 2014, 2021). He carries out his research with colleagues in the International Center for School-Based Youth Development. He earned his Ph.D. from UC Santa Barbara.