Michael A. Burstein was born in New York City and grew up in the neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens. In the early 1990s, he graduated from Harvard College with an A.B. in Physics and from Boston University with an M.A. in Physics. In 2008 he returned to Boston University and earned a Certificate in Book Publishing.
Michael lived in Brookline from 1991-1993 when he was a graduate student, and he was so delighted with the town that in 1995 he and his wife chose to start their life together in Brookline, where they have lived ever since. They have twin daughters in first grade.
Michael is devoted to education. He worked as a teacher at the Cambridge School of Weston and the Rashi School, and he currently develops science curricula for students from Kindergarten to high school.
Michael has been a devoted supporter of libraries from the time he was a child and received his first library card. He served as a library volunteer in elementary school and high school. When he taught at the Cambridge School of Weston, he served on the school’s library committee, and at the Rashi School he was put in charge of purchasing for the school’s media center.
Michael is also an award-winning writer. He has been publishing short stories since 1995, and his first book, I Remember the Future, came out in 2008 and is available at the Public Library of Brookline.
Michael has been involved in town government for twenty-two years. He was first elected as a Town Meeting Member in 2001 and since being in office has never missed a night of Town Meeting. He has been a Library Trustee since 2004, and chair of the Board from 2014-2016 and 2021-present.