Michael A. Thomas is the president of The DESIGN Collective Group, Inc., a multi-faceted design/build firm in Jupiter, Florida with a special interest in designing interior environments that are functional, practical and accessible to anyone, no matter the age or abilities. He holds memberships in the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID,) the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and the National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA,) Michael is a licensed interior designer in Florida, has passed the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) exam and is a “Certified Aging In Place” (CAPS) specialist.

Michael’s interior design work has been published various media including Florida House & Garden, Miami Herald, Palm Beach Post, Coastal Home, Houston Chronicle and ASID’s ICON Magazine. In October, 2004, he was honored with a cover and profile story in Interiors + Sources Magazine. He has been featured on the TV program “Outrageous Beach Homes” on the Travel Channel and has been quoted on the importance of creating barrier free living environments for an aging population in Time, Dwell, GBCC Foundation magazines and the Palm Beach Post Guide To Real Estate.

He has written numerous articles about the profession for his peers for ASID’s ICON magazine. And in the summer of 2007, his first book, Residential Design for Aging In Place will go to print by the publishing house of John Wiley and Company, New York, NY.

His varied other passions related to the interiors profession include an in depth study of Frank Lloyd Wright to speaking, lecturing and facilitating numerous peer-to-peer workshops on such subjects as ethics, aging-in-place and strategic planning and management.

Michael is a dedicated ASID volunteer, joining the organization in 1983, He has been the Florida South Chapter President, the ASID Chapter Support Team Chair, ASID chapter strategic planning counselor, selected as the first ASID spokesperson on matters of Aging-In-Place and the first chair of the ASID Council on Aging In Place. In 2004 he was honored by ASID with the designation of Fellow of the Society. Michael is currently serving on the National Board of Directors for ASID as Director with Financial Oversight.