She attended LaGuardia High School of Performing Arts in New York City.
[2] After graduating, on the high school dean's advice, rather than accepting a place at the SUNY Conservatory, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue her acting career.
[3][4] Between acting jobs, she takes literature classes at the University of Southern California, where she majors in English.
[1][9] She played the evangelical preacher from the age of 15 into her 40s, which was a challenge for her developing acting skills.
[10] In 2009, Michaels also had notable supporting roles in the big screen horror film Boogeyman 3, and the NBC television disaster miniseries Meteor: Path to Destruction.