About Michael
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for the film "Power & Control" |
Over the last 30 years, Michael's passion for social justice and public service has led to his involvement in many areas:
At the Capitol
- Elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives from District 64B in 1996
- Chair, House Public Safety Finance Division. This division has financial oversight over the Courts, Department of Corrections, Department of Public Safety, BCA, Homeland Security, Department of Human Rights, Sentencing Guidelines Commission, and crime victim programs.
- Member, House Finance Committee
- Member, Public Safety Policy and Oversight Committee
- Member, Crime Victims/Criminal Records Division
- Past Chair, St. Paul Delegation - Minnesota House of Representatives
- Past Chair, Metro Caucus - Minnesota House of Representatives
- Member, Council of State Governments Public Safety and Justice Task Force
- Member, National Conference of State Legislatures Committee on Law and Justice
In the Community
For over 20 years, Michael has lived in the Macalester Groveland neighborhood of St. Paul.
- Community Advisory Board, Junior League of St. Paul
- Former Board Member, Clearway Minnesota
- Former Board Member, Eastern European Medical Society
- Former Board Member, Scenic Minnesota
- Former Commissioner on the Saint Paul Charter Commission
- Former social worker and teacher
- Member, GreenPeace, Sierra Club, Amnesty International, ACLU, Jewish Community Action
- Member, Jewish Community Center
Employment & Education
- Master of Public Administration, Hamline University
- Bachelor of Arts in Education and History, College of St. Scholastica
- Resource Specialist, Battered Women's Justice Project (current)
- Author of two books on domestic violence
- Co-founder, Duluth Domestic Abuse Intervention Project
- Worked with the Open Society Institute, National Training Project, and Advocates for Human Rights - assisting countries in Europe, eastern Europe, Caucuses, Balkans, Middle East, Australia, and China in their development of domestic violence laws and policies for police, courts, and human service providers
- Former member, Duluth City Council
- Former adjunct professor, University of St. Thomas
- Former consultant, County of Los Angeles Probation Department
- Former director, Dakota County Domestic Violence Project