Dr. Jonathan Furner is an associate professor in the Department of Information Studies, which is part of the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies (GSE&IS). Jonathan got his bachelor’s degree in philosophy and social theory from the University of Cambridge, and went on to take a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in information studies at the University of Sheffield in the U.K. He is currently chair of UCLA’s doctoral program in information studies, and has taught classes in the Master of Library and Information Science program since 1998.

Jonathan is interested in how libraries, archives, and museums organize their collections, and how access to the resources in those collections can be improved by applying "metadata" to the resources. Many of the problems that arise in the development of metadata schemes are philosophical in nature, and Jonathan is particularly interested in the area of philosophy known as ontology. He has written many research papers about the history, theory, and philosophy of information studies, and is an active member of several international associations, such as the International Society for Knowledge Organization, and the International Federation of Library Associations. In 2005-06, he spent a year working at the Library of Congress as an assistant editor of the Dewey Decimal Classification.

Jonathan is a lifelong fan of Norwich City Football Club, and enjoys listening to indie music, eating spicy food, visiting art museums, playing board games, celebrating random holidays, and going to the zoo. He was FIR for Rieber Hall for two years (2006-08), and helped Rieber residents run a graphic novel book club, play in a cricket match, take a trip to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and bake a cake in the shape of a turtle (amongst other things).

Jonathan lives in Delta Terrace with his wife Natalie and two sons, Zaki (3) and Luki (0). Natalie is a librarian and library consultant. She supports Arsenal, likes to spend time with friends and family, and loves life in LA. Zaki goes to Fernald Child Care Center on the UCLA campus, and likes Thomas the Tank Engine. Luki stays at home and (like his Dad) enjoys sleeping and eating. Zaki and Luki are US citizens, but Jonathan and Natalie are both from England, and occasionally they go back there to brush up on their British accents.