Michelle Vanhala is a 2026-2027 Teach Plus Michigan Senior Policy Fellow, science teacher, advisor, and instructional coach at Washtenaw Technical Middle College in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She previously taught physics, chemistry, and biology at Tecumseh High School, where she collaborated to create a project-based interdisciplinary learning curriculum. Michelle holds National Board Certification in Adolescence and Young Adulthood Biology, is a Knowles Science Teaching Foundation Senior Fellow, was named the Michigan Science Teachers Association Science Teacher of Promise (2020), and serves as a National Board Certification coach through TeachMichigan. She earned a BS in integrated science and English for secondary education from Central Michigan University, MS in science education from the University of Michigan-Dearborn, and is pursuing an EdS in educational administration at Central Michigan University.
