Our Team
Michael Brustein, Esquire
Founding Partner
Having served as an attorney adviser to the former United States Office of Education, and Chief of the Adult and Vocational Education Branch in the HEW Office of General Counsel / Education Division, Michael Brustein served on the transition team to establish the United States Education Department. Following the opening of the new federal department in May 1980, he founded the firm Brustein & Manasevit with Leigh Manasevit (retired) in July 1980. In 2023, the Firm changed it name to The Bruman Group, PLLC paying homage to both founding partners.
Over the past 40 years, the Firm has worked with all 50 states, many school districts, postsecondary institutions, and national education organizations on issues related to federal support of education and workforce development. Over this period of time Michael Brustein has been recognized as one of the nation’s leading experts on federal grants management, audit resolution, as well as workforce education and development issues.
Bar and Court Admissions:
- District of Columbia, 1979
- New York, 1982
- U.S. Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit, 1976
- U.S. Supreme Court, 1978
Education:
- University of Connecticut School of Law, Hartford, CT, J.D.
- New York University, New York, NY, B.A.
- Major: Political Science
- Honors: Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa, Honors Scholar, Pi Sigma Alpha
Publications:
- The Comprehensive Guide to the Federal Role in Career & Technical Education, 2018
- The Administrator and Provider’s Guide to the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, 2014
- The One-Stop Guide to the Final WIA Regulations, 2000
- The One-Stop Guide to the Perkins Act of 1998
- The NAPIC Guide to the Workforce Investment Act of 1998
- The Administrator’s Guide to the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act of 1998
- The School-to-Work User’s Guide: Understanding Federal Cost Principles and Avoiding Audit Liability, 1997
- The AVA Guide to the School-to-Work Opportunities Act, 1994
- The AVA Guide to Federal Funding for Tech Prep, 1992
- The AVA Audit Handbook: Avoiding Audit Liability Under the 1990 Perkins Act, Revised Edition, 1992