Senior Associate
Hailing originally from Jefferson County in Northwest Pennsylvania, Michele joins NSA having built an extensive and accomplished resume that includes over 25 years of local and state government experience on a variety of issues including agriculture, criminal justice, tourism and economic development.
Michele began her professional career at the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole serving as a Legislative Liaison. After that, Michele went to work in Pennsylvania agriculture economy serving as the Director of Government Relations for the Pennsylvania Landscape and Nursery Association, a trade association representing PA’s horticulture industry.
Most of her recent professional experience was with the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. From 2003 to 2013, Michele served in constituent services, grant management and economic development roles with the then-Majority Leader and Speaker, Sam Smith. For the last 10 years, Michele has served with State Representative Donna Oberlander, serving as her Chief of Staff as Oberlander rose through the ranks of House Leadership, including the Office of Majority Caucus Secretary, Majority Policy Chairman, Majority Whip, and the House Tourism and Economic and Recreational Development Committee.
As Chief of Staff to the Majority Caucus Secretary, Michele used her vast knowledge of state government to develop a very successful training program for incoming State Representatives. In the Policy Chairman’s Office, Michele managed the coordination of various hearings, roundtables, and tours at locations throughout the Commonwealth to highlight the policy and legislative initiatives of the caucus.
In 2020, Michele would become the Chief of Staff of the first female Pennsylvania Republican Majority Whip. During her time in that capacity, she “whipped” vote counts on a variety of high-profile legislative initiatives while working closely with the Majority Leader’s Office in assisting in running the House legislative calendar. The COVID pandemic during this time required Michele to develop and administer the unprecedented remote voting process that was needed for the legislature to continue operating throughout the period.
Michele has had a direct hand in crafting, negotiating, and securing passage of many legislative initiatives during her legislative career including Act 57 of 1999 (guidelines utilized by consumers and industry during drought emergencies); Act 7 of 2020 (regulation of human milk banks used by hospitals and new moms of fragile infants); Act 25 of 2021 (exempts large data centers from sales and use tax to attract this sector to PA); and Act 130 of 2022 (permits driverless testing and deployment of PA’s emerging highly autonomous vehicle industry).
Community service is at the heart of many of Michele’s activities outside of her professional pursuits. She currently serves on the Orwigsburg Lions Club and as a Head Girls’ Basketball Coach through the Blue Mountain Recreation Commission. She served multiple terms on Orwigsburg Borough Council, including several years as President. She is a general partner in her family’s farm in Jefferson County, Corbin Holdings LLC, which serves as a wedding venue and operates in both Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale and solar industries. Michele holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. She resides in Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania with her husband Brett and daughter Olivia.