Earning a Bachelor of Science in education from Temple University in 1960, Gayle Granatir Michael, MA, BS, became certified as a teacher in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and embarked on her career as a teacher because she felt she had something she could give back to the kids of her community. She first served as a teacher and basketball and debate coach in the Media Borough School District in Pennsylvania from 1960 to 1963, before working in the same capacity at Woodrow Wilson High School in New Jersey from 1963 to 1966. Briefly spending time as a production manager with an advertising agency during her graduate studies at Saint Joseph’s University, she obtained a Master of Arts in 1967 and resumed teaching in the Norristown Area School District from 1968 to 1971 and at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey from 1972 to 1973. Since 1982, Ms. Michael has served as an educational consultant and academic tutor in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, where she has also proffered her skills as a ghost writer and a public speaking coach.
Very active in the field of politics as well, Ms. Michael first became politically involved through work with the Committee of Seventy, which is a Philadelphia based non-profit organization that advocates for better government practices, helps elections run smoothly and keeps its citizens informed and engaged. She later held a role on the board of directors for the Main Line Women’s Network from 1988 to 1990 and for the Republican Women of the Main Line in 1989. Since 1992, she has been a committeewoman in the Montgomery County Republican Party and was notably a candidate for the Republican Congressional Primary in 1994.
Since 1994, Ms. Michael has excelled as a private practice political consultant in Bala Cynwyd. She is also currently involved serving on the advisory board of the Montgomery County Office of Children and Youth, where she does work helping abused and neglected children. Becoming a charter member of the National Council of Women Advisors to the United States Congress in 1995, she co-founded the Montgomery County Women’s Republican Leadership that same year.
Alongside her primary responsibilities, Ms. Michael has been active in a number of other civic and professional endeavors. In 1989, she spent time working as a weather spotter for the United States Department of Commerce, and in 1992, she served on the alumni board of governors at Saint Joseph’s University. She is presently on the board of trustees for the Belmont Hills Library, where she is involved with library fundraising. In addition, she has maintained affiliation with such organizations as the Modern Language Association, the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, the Neighborhood Club of Bala Cynwyd, the World Affairs Councils of America and the National Rifle Association.
For excellence in her career, Ms. Michael has been the recipient of a number of honors and accolades. Notably, she was inducted into the Pennsylvania Honor Roll of Women in 1996. More recently, she was presented with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award and named a Marquis Who’s Who Top Professional. Above all these accolades, she cites the highlight of her career as the time in 1971 when she was getting married and was going to miss her students’ graduation. She was shocked when her students were upset not at her missing their graduation, but that they would miss her wedding, and she was truly touched by the gifts they gave her.
Born in Philadelphia to father Michael Rosenfeld and mother Anne Quittle, Ms. Michael is incredibly proud to have raised two wonderful and successful sons, Matthew and Geoffrey. Through them, she is also grandmother to four delightful grandchildren, Alexander, Maxwell, Vincent and Madeline. In her free time, Ms. Michael enjoys research, writing and traveling, particularly to places like Eastern Europe and South America. Looking toward the future, she hopes to be able to get back to traveling soon, as she loves meeting new people, and has set her sights on visiting Croatia.