Regional Needs  |  Projects

Pacific: American Samoa, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, Northern Mariana Islands, Republic of the Marshall Islands, & Republic of Palau

Director, REL Pacific
Dr. Thomas W. Barlow

Dr. Thomas Barlow, Pacific Resources for Education and Learning’s (PREL) President and Chief Executive Officer, serves as Director of the REL Pacific. He is the author of numerous articles, curricula, and monographs on issues facing education, particularly school reform and health education. Dr. Barlow has also written for medical and educational audiences, often with prevention and youth foci. Recent health-related writings have included an article with the Journal of Drug Education and a manuscript for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) about managed care. Dr. Barlow is currently collaborating with a group of national experts on special education issues to produce a monograph series on the health requirements of children with special needs. Previous positions held by Dr. Barlow at PREL over the past decade include Chief Operating Officer, Chief Program Officer, and Visiting Scholar.

Before joining PREL in 1996, Dr. Barlow served as a classroom educator; school administrator; and designer/administrator of state, regional, and national education department programs. He has distinguished himself through a host of reports and studies for state education departments and has been appointed to participate in federal evaluative efforts. Dr. Barlow has served as the director of one of the U.S. Department of Education’s Regional Centers for Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities. Additionally, he has served as chair for the SAMHSA Center for Substance Abuse Prevention’s High Risk Youth Demonstration Grant review group.

Dr. Barlow earned two doctorates from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln—one in language arts education and the other in administration, curriculum, and instruction. He holds many memberships in professional organizations, including the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, American Educational Research Association, American Public Health Association, and Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Thomas W. Barlow: Lab Director's Meeting, REL Conference, July 19-20, 2006 (6:38)