Mike Flanagan was appointed State Superintendent of Public Instruction by the State Board of Education on May 18, 2005 .  He directs the Michigan Department of Education; chairs the State Board of Education; and advises the State Board of Education, the Governor, and the state Legislature regarding public education in Michigan.

Mike has been a local school superintendent, regional superintendent, and served as the Executive Director of the statewide associations that represent Michigan public school superintendents and intermediate school districts in the state.

For seven years, Mike Flanagan served as the Superintendent of the Wayne Regional Educational Service Agency (RESA).  Prior to that, he was Superintendent of the Farmington/Farmington Hills School District in Michigan for five years.  He is past chairperson of the Education Alliance of Michigan, a nonprofit coalition of leading parent, business, and education associations; and past president of the National County Superintendents Association.

Superintendent Flanagan has degrees from the University of Notre Dame and Eastern Michigan University. He is married to Anna and has three children:  Mike, Brian, and Christa.