Emily Glenn-Smith

Emily Glenn-Smith is a seasoned instructor and presenter with more than two decades as an educator in the field of American Sign Language. Her ambition is that students will learn to appreciate and respect ASL as an organic, distinctive, and wholly naturally occurring language—and recognize that Deaf people are a part of diverse communities with their own set of cultural traditions and values. Recognizing the complex and multi-dimensional skill set required to acquire this level of learning, and that not all students learn the same things in the same way, Professor Glenn-Smith’s approach to teaching is an eclectic one that celebrates diversity of both thought and student. She teaches with the aim to ignite a greater overall blaze of Deaf culture and community-centered appreciation and, in the wake of that illumination and understanding, one student at a time, lessen linguistic and cultural barriers facing our worlds.

Before teaching at both Boston University, Professor Glenn-Smith taught at Harvard University for 5 years and was the ASL program director for 15 years at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Her experience spans from teaching introductory ASL to a variety of advanced ASL level courses and workshops in the field of ASL interpreting. In addition to teaching ASL, she has developed various curricula to suit the needs of specialized programs. 

Professor Glenn-Smith holds an MA in Sign Language Education from Gallaudet University. She is also nationally certified by the American Sign Language Teachers Association.