About Michelle

eight fun things

—I can captain a 39 foot motor yacht

—I danced on the 50 yard line in a half-time show for the Dallas Cowboys

—When I was eleven I sat on the first row of a Rolling Stones concert

—In Ireland I took falconry and owl lessons

—I hiked 4 out of 5 legs of the Cinque Terra in Italy (wimped out on the last one)

—I attended the internationally famous Matchmaking Festival in Lisdoonvarna, Ireland. (I wasn’t looking for a match, but I did learn how to waltz, sort of.)

—I was a model for a very brief time at age 30. The first time I was on a runway, I ran into another model. Later in the show I stepped out of one of my high heels while on stage.

—My favorite sounds are a child’s laughter and the wind in the trees

I grew up as an Air Force brat, never staying in one place longer than a couple of years. That pattern continued as I attended several colleges, moved often during my marriage, and taught in over a dozen schools across three states. I finally found home… in Maryland. I fell in love with the rolling hillsides and waterways of the Annapolis area, and my heart is firmly planted here—along with those foreign, tall green things they tell me are called trees.

Professionally, I taught and served as a chairperson in special education for 12 years in high schools, and another 12 years in elementary schools. Overlapping a bit is a career as an adjunct professor. I’ve been blessed enough to love most moments of my career (with the exception of one questionable year, but hey, we learn from the tough times too).

I am passionate about writing essays; I sit down to write, and suddenly four hours have passed. That’s the limit before my two kitties, D’Artagnan and Aramis, start walking across my laptop keyboard. Their editorial contributions are highly questionable.

When I’m not writing or teaching, I like to kayak, take philosophy classes, play with my godchildren, swim for exercise (I am the slowest one in the lap lanes), read, and hang out with an amazing, varied group of friends.

I am the mother of a daughter and a son, grandmother of two girls and a boy, and fairy godmother of a darling girl and boy.

I attended Howard Payne University, Texas Woman’s University, and the University of South Alabama, earning a B.S. in Deaf Education and an M.Ed. in Learning Disabilities and Emotional/Behavioral Disorders.

The Casual Bio

dad and me

The Professional Bio

Teaching Career:

14 years- Adjunct Professor, Anne Arundel Community College

‍Courses Taught: Behavioral/Instructional Strategies for ASD; Social Skills for Students with Autism (created course for accreditation); Introduction to Special Education; Instructional Strategies for Special Learners; Instructional Teamwork

12 years- Special Education Department Chairperson and Teacher, overlapping with part of adjunct position

12 years- Special Education Department Chairperson and Teacher, three high schools

2 years- Teacher of Deaf, classroom and itinerant teacher

Honors/Achievements:

Author of The Boy Who Healed A School: A True Story of Autism, Courage, and Kindness

Editor and Contributing Author for Building Bridges Autism Social Skills Curriculum, Anne Arundel County, MD

Presenter, Special Educator’s Conference, Arnold, MD; Para-educator’s Conference, Arnold, MD; Workshop Leader, Coping Skills Inservice, Anne Arundel County, MD;

Presenter, National Convention, Council for Exceptional Children, Denver, CO

Developed and piloted Coping Skills curriculum for Anne Arundel County, MD

Education:

M.Ed., Learning Disabilities; Emotional Disturbances; University of  South Alabama

B.S., Education of Hearing Impaired, Texas Woman’s University

Howard Payne University