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Michael Travis

2006 Pacesetter Award Winner: Michael J. Travis

College of Education and Human Services, Business Education Michael J Travis

As principal of Lakeview (Mich.) High School, Michael Travis is lead teacher for the school and works to expand the leadership capacity of both his students and staff. He especially stresses the importance of reading to instilling a lifelong love of learning.

Travis works closely with student placement coordinators from Ferris and other universities in the placement, education and evaluation of student teachers. He is a regular guest speaker in the Teacher Education and Administrator Education departments at Central Michigan University.

As an undergraduate at Ferris, Travis served as vice president of the Weight Lifting Club. He has taken that interest forward into both his personal and professional life. At the 2006 West Michigan Open Push/Pull Power Lifting Championships, Davis placed first in the deadlift and second in the bench press in the 200-pound class. As director of an alternative education program for non-traditional and troubled learners at LHS, he arranged a unique work-based program with Lakeview Community Wellness Center, which allows students use of facilities in exchange for work at the center.

Travis’ community leadership includes a commitment to recognizing and eliminating discrimination and barriers to learning experienced by the less fortunate. His belief that education is the path out of poverty underlies his conviction that understanding and meeting the needs of economically disadvantaged students is a moral and cultural imperative.