Mike Furnari is currently pursuing his master's degree in peace and conflict studies at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Academically, he is interested in studying extremism and terrorism. Mike has interned at the UMass Lowell Center for Terrorism and Security Studies, studying domestic terrorism in the United States and is currently doing research on terrorism in East Asia. His hobbies are hiking and martial arts. Mike has obtained black belts in multiple martial arts, and has taught and competed for several years in Lowell, Massachusetts.