Born in Oklahoma, Michael Soliday grew up in Iowa and Colorado, and was mainstreamed at public schools long before most students were with a hearing impairment. “My son, whom I adopted from the island of Guam, is also deaf. I wanted to show him that there are no obstacles in life unless you make it one.” He received his B.S. from Utah State University and his M.Ed. from McDaniel College (formerly Western Maryland College). In 1993, he received the Nevada Teacher of the Year award. He has taught in Iowa, Nevada, North Carolina, Florida, New York City, the island of Guam and Texas. He currently lives​ in Indianola, Iowa.