To view a searchable listing of Washington 14 speakers, which includes the sessions in which they'll be appearing, click here.
Jessica Aronoff
Jessica Aronoff is an attorney and a long-time advocate on issues affecting women and youth. Since 1998 Aronoff has been with Break the Cycle, a national nonprofit organization whose mission is to end domestic violence by working proactively with youth. Break the Cycle furthers this mission by providing young people ages 12 to 22 with preventive law-based education, free legal services, advocacy and support. Prior to attending law school, she worked for several years at The Children's Partnership, a national nonprofit children's policy and advocacy organization. In law school, she served as executive editor of the UCLA Women's Law Journal, and as co-chair of El Centro Legal, organizing and supervising legal clinics for homeless and runaway youth. Aronoff has received several awards and honors for her achievements and public service work, including membership to the Order of the Coif (legal honors society); the UCLA School of Law Joseph Hairston Duff Public Interest Award; and the Foundation of the State Bar of California MBNA Public Interest Scholarship.
Ambassador Daniel Ayalon
Ambassador Daniel Ayalon has played an instrumental role in Israel's foreign policy during the last three consecutive Israeli administrations. Prior to his appointment as Ambassador to the United States, Daniel Ayalon was the foreign policy adviser to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Ayalon, a professional Foreign Service diplomat, has previously served as deputy foreign policy adviser to former prime ministers Ehud Barak and Benjamin Netanyahu. He has also served on various diplomatic and informational missions abroad, including -- inter alia -- being a member of the Israel-U.S. senior strategic dialogue team. Ayalon, a native of Tel Aviv, is a graduate of Tel Aviv University's Economics Department and holds an MBA from the U.S. He served in various international trade and finance positions prior to joining the Foreign Service.
Paul Begala
Paul Begala is the co-host of CNN's legendary Crossfire, as he debates politics, the media and culture with the sharpest minds of our time -- and does so with wit, passion and a great sense of humor. As counselor to President Clinton, Begala helped define and defend the administration's agenda, from the State of the Union address to the economic, domestic and international issues the White House faced each day. He was also one of the administration's principal public spokesmen. Begala is a research professor of government and public policy at Georgetown University, where he teaches undergraduates in the Department of Government and graduate students in the Georgetown Public Policy Institute. Begala received his B.A. in government and his law degree from the University of Texas at Austin, where he was student body president. In addition to his current post at Georgetown, Begala has taught at the University of Texas, lectured at Oxford University in England, and participated in symposia at schools including Harvard, Princeton and Columbia.
Laura Blumenfeld
Laura Blumenfeld was a junior at Harvard when her father was shot and almost killed by a Palestinian terrorist in 1986. Her inspiration for her book "Revenge: A Story of Hope," came from a poem she wrote in which she vowed to find the gunman and avenge the attack. In the course of her research, one question haunted her: Could she make her father human in the gunman's eyes? Perhaps, she thought, but only if she hid her identity from him. He would come to know her and her father, only if he did not know who they really were. In the end Blumenfeld realized it was the very nature of the near miss that allowed her to entertain thoughts of vengeance. It was a blow she thought she could return. Blumenfeld reported "Revenge" during a yearlong sabbatical from The Washington Post, where she is now a writer-at-large. She says that journalism gave her just enough distance and legitimacy to pursue this very personal and potentially dangerous story.
Donna Bojarsky
Donna Bojarksy is a political consultant who operates in the nexus between the entertainment industry and Democratic party politics. She helps advise actor Richard Dreyfuss and Norman Pattiz, founder and chairman of Westwood One, on their political activities and philanthropies. Bojarsky has been involved in public service since a very young age. She is the founder and co-chair of L.A. Works, a non-profit, public action and volunteer center in Los Angeles. She also serves on the National Board of City Cares of America, a national organization representing 26 network cities, organizing and promoting volunteer service. Bojarsky is a founder and co-chair of the local New Leaders Project, a unique civic training program for young Jewish leaders. In addition, she was appointed to the Los Angeles County Human Relations Commission, where she was elected as a vice-chair.
Rabbi Alfredo Borodowski
Rabbi Alfredo F. Borodowski serves as the rabbi of the Jewish Community Center of Harrison, a conservative synagogue, in Westchester County, New York. A native of Argentina, he earned a law degree at the University of Buenos Aires Law School and attended the Seminario Rabinico Latinoamericano where he was ordained. He moved to the United States in 1989 and earned his doctorate in Jewish philosophy from the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City, where he currently teaches in the graduate and the rabbincal schools. Rabbi Borodowski is the founding president of the Estelle Silverstone Foundation for Jewish Spiritual Revival. He specializes in spiritual organizational development and on intelligence and personality types as spiritual expressions. He serves at the UJA New York Argentina Task Force Commission and led the Ben Gurion UJC mission to Argentina. Rabbi Borodowski is widely published in Jewish scholarly journals. His most recent book, "Isaac Abravanel on Miracles, Creation, Prophecy and Evil: The Tension Between Medieval Jewish Philosophy and Biblical Commentary," was published in 2003 by Peter Lang Publishing. Currently he is working on a book on biblical lessons applied to the business world.
Rabbi Daniel Brenner
Rabbi Daniel S. Brenner is the director of the Center for Multifaith Education at Auburn Theological Seminary, a nearly two-hundred-year-old Presbyterian seminary located on Manhattan's Upper West Side. As the first rabbi at Auburn, and one of the only rabbis in America to work at a Christian seminary, Brenner brings together Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and other religious leaders to address deep-rooted conflicts and to promote a vision of religious understanding and diversity. Ordained by the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in 1997, Brenner went on to study with noted theologian and Holocaust scholar Rabbi Irving "Yitz" Greenberg at the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership and was named by The Jewish Week as one of the upcoming generation's "best and brightest" Jewish leaders in 2001. A published playwright and a frequent contributor to Jewish publications, the book Brenner co-authored (with Joseph J. Fins, MD, Chief of Medical Ethics at Cornell's New York-Presbyterian Medical Center) "Embracing Life and Facing Death: A Jewish Guide to Palliative Care," was praised by Senator Joseph Lieberman as a "transcendent contribution."
Erica Brown
Erica Brown is the scholar-in-residence for the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington and director of its Jewish Leadership Institute. She formerly served in that capacity for the federation of Boston. Brown did her undergraduate studies at Yeshiva University and continued her graduate work at the University of London and Harvard University. She was a Jerusalem Fellow and is a faculty member of the Wexner Heritage Foundation. She has been teaching Jewish adult education for 16 years and has lectured widely in the United States, London and Israel in addition to extensive writing in journals of education and Jewish studies. She has chapters in "Jewish Legal Writings by Women," "Torah of the Mothers," and "Wisdom from All of My Teachers" and writes a weekly Internet essay on the Torah portion of the week. She is the author of the forthcoming book, "The Sacred Canvas: The Hebrew Bible in the Eyes of the Artist."
Dr. Ellen Cannon
Dr. Ellen S. Cannon has been a professor of political science for over 20 years and currently teaches at Northeastern Illinois University. A leader and an advocate on behalf of Israel and American Jewry, Dr. Cannon is currently vice president of the American Jewish Congress, Midwest Region. She is a faculty member of the Wexner Heritage Foundation and a lecturer for the Steinhardt Internship Program. From 1988 to 1994, Dr. Cannon was a commissioner for Jewish Women's Equality of the American Jewish Congress Midwest Region. Cannon is a recipient of the Esther Award for Jewish Women's Leadership from Shalva (an organization that combats domestic violence); she is also a member of both the Moriah Process and the North American Jewish Forum. Dr. Cannon is a traditional Jew who combines a commitment to Jewish continuity and learning with a progressive political agenda. Dr. Cannon has dedicated herself to fighting for the security of Israel and the safety of world Jewry. As a national political analyst she is on the cutting edge in analyzing political issues and explaining how they impact the Jewish community and Israel. She appears regularly on PBS, national radio and is a political feature writer for Crain's Chicago Business.
Jonathan Cannon
Jonathon Cannon is currently head of school at the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville, Md. With over 1,500 students, CESJDS is one of the largest and most well known Jewish day schools in the world. He began his career working for British Hillel as director of education and then became a teacher of Jewish studies and computer studies. While working in the UK, Cannon received the Chief Rabbi's Award for excellence in education. Prior to taking this position in the U.S., Cannon was head of school of the Carmel School in Hong Kong. Carmel School is an American international Jewish day school for the children of Jewish families living and working in Hong Kong and southern China. Cannon is also a vice president of the National Association of Jewish High Schools with responsibility for Israel education and Israel programming.
Rep. Eric Cantor
Rep. Eric Cantor was sworn in as U.S. Congressman for Virginia's Seventh District on January 3, 2001. During his first term in Congress, Cantor served on the House Financial Services Committee and on the House International Relations Committee. Before his election to Congress, he served in the Virginia House of Delegates for nine years and achieved a record of accomplishment as a state legislator that was recognized by groups such as Virginia Free, the leading pro-business organization in Virginia, as well as the Virginia Family Foundation and the Virginia Health Care Association. In November 2002, Cantor won re-election to Congress, obtaining 70% of the vote. Shortly after his re-election, Cantor was selected to serve as Chief Deputy Majority Whip, the highest appointed position in the House of Representatives. On January 10, 2003, he won a seat on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, which has direct jurisdiction over taxes, trade, Social Security, Medicare, prescription drugs for seniors, health care and welfare reform. While attending George Washington University, he got his political start interning with Congressman Tom Bliley and served as his driver on his first re-election campaign. He then attended the College of William and Mary, where he received his law degree, and went on to get his Masters at Columbia University in New York.
Cindy Chupack
Cindy Chupack is the author of "The Between Boyfriends Book: A Collection of Cautiously Hopeful Essays" and a writer/executive producer for HBO's Emmy and Golden Globe-winning series, "Sex and the City." She's been with the show since the second season, and several episodes she penned ("Evolution," "Attack of the 5'10" Woman," "Just Say Yes" and "Plus One is the Loneliest Number") have been nominated for WGA and Emmy awards. Chupack is currently bi-coastal, giving her the opportunity for story gathering on both coasts. She received a journalism degree from Northwestern University, and then moved to New York City to work in advertising right out of college. She sold her first humorous essay to New York Woman magazine in 1990. The piece was spotted by a TV writer/producer, who encouraged her to pursue comedy writing, which she's been doing ever since. She also wrote, created and executive produced the short-lived but well reviewed ABC series, "Madigan Men," which starred Gabriel Byrne. Prior to working on "Sex and the City," she spent two seasons writing and producing "Everybody Loves Raymond," and before that she wrote for "Coach." Chupack (like Carrie Bradshaw) has written humorous essays about dating and relationships for Glamour, Harper's Bazaar, Allure and Slate, and she had a monthly column in Glamour called Dating Dictionary.
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton was elected United States Senator from New York in 2000. She is the first First Lady elected to the United States Senate. Senator Clinton serves on the Senate Committees for Environment and Public Works; Health, Education, Labor and Pensions; and was recently appointed to the Senate Armed Services Committee. During the 107th Congress, Senator Clinton worked to make the extension of unemployment insurance a national priority; supported the 2002 Farm Bill that helped New York's $3.4 billion agriculture industry; hosted the first broadband conference in upstate New York to encourage improved broadband access; brought the Dublin, Ireland, Chamber of Commerce to Buffalo; introduced legislation to rebuild schools; championed a block grant to provide direct funding for first responders; worked to reinstate the "Pediatric Rule" so that all medicines and vaccines are safe for children; and introduced legislation to strengthen the upstate New York economy. Senator Clinton is recognized around the world as an advocate for democracy, religious tolerance and human rights, and as a champion for women and girls, emphasizing access to education, economic opportunity, family planning and women's rights to make their own decisions on reproductive health. The senator has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the Claude Pepper Award of the National Association for Home Care, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Award of the Progressive National Baptist Convention, the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center Medal, the Servant of Justice Award of the New York City Legal Aid Society, the Eleanor Roosevelt Val-Kill Medal, the Public Spirit Award of the American Legion Auxiliary, the Shalom Chaver Award for International Leadership of the Yitzhak Rabin Center for Israel Studies, and the Albert Shanker Award of the New York State United Teachers. Senator Clinton's books include "It Takes a Village and Other Lessons Children Teach Us," "Dear Socks, Dear Buddy: Kids Letters to the First Pets" (Simon & Schuster 1998), "An Invitation to the White House" (Simon & Schuster 2000), and "Living History" (Simon & Schuster 2003). In addition, the senator has authored numerous magazine and journal articles as well as op-ed pieces.
Simmonetta Della Seta
Simonetta Della Seta is an Italian scholar and a senior journalist with expertise in history of the Middle East and in history of the Jewish people. The Italian Foreign Ministry recently appointed her as the cultural attaché at the Italian embassy in Tel-Aviv. Since January 2001 she has worked as senior editor at Apcom, the Italian branch of Associated Press. She has also worked as a Middle East correspondent for the Italian daily Il Giornale and for the Italian TV network MEDIASET, and she has been a contributor to the Italian weekly Panorama, Italian daily Il Foglio and the Swiss radio in RSTI (Italian language). Her scholarly pursuits include research projects on the Mussolini regime policy in the Middle East, including its relations with the Zionist movement, with the Jewish communities in some Mediterranean countries under Italian influence (Greece, Egypt, Libya), and later with the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. Della Seta is the author of numerous articles and two books: "Israelis and Palestinians: The Price of Non Peace" (Giuntina, 1999) and "The Guardian of the Holy Sepulchre" (Mondadori, 2000).
Dr. David Elcott
David Elcott, author, lecturer and organizational consultant, has brought his insights and analyses of Judaism and contemporary Jewish life to well over 100 communities across North America. With a Ph.D. in Political Science specializing in modern Zionism and Middle East Studies, and as the former Vice-President of CLAL responsible for bringing programs to communal leaders, rabbis, Jewish communal professionals and young leadership throughout this continent, Elcott's insight and passion transform anxiety over the future into confidence in the Jewish people's capacity to renew ourselves once again as a vital force in the world. Author of "A Sacred Journey: The Jewish Quest for a Perfect World" and of numerous articles and monographs, Elcott is in a new phase of life, working on his own directly with federations and their agencies, Jewish communal organizations and corporate clients to focus on their sacred missions so that they can respond even more effectively to the new conditions of 21st century life. Dr. Elcott also creates settings in which the finest academic minds in North America, the best community organizers and Jewish communal leadership work together to address pressing issues of civic engagement, leadership, Jewish identity and conflict resolution.
Steve Emerson
Steven Emerson is an award-winning Washington-based correspondent, author and commentator specializing in national security, terrorism and Middle East affairs. He is presently at work on a book and documentary on Islamic fundamentalism. He recently served as an investigative correspondent for CNN, where he broke many international stories on counter-terrorism, intelligence and the Middle East. Emerson also writes frequently on terrorism, the Middle East, foreign affairs and U.S. national security. Between 1985 and 1989, Emerson worked as a senior editor for U.S. News and World Report, where he authored more than two dozen cover stories. Emerson has been awarded the Investigative Reporters and Editors Award three times for best national investigative reporting. Emerson is the author or co-author of four books, including "Terrorist," (Villard/Random House, 1991), "The Fall of Pan Am 103" (Putnam, 1990), "Secret Warriors: Inside the Covert Military Operations of the Reagan Era" (Putnam, 1988), and "The American House of Saud" (Franklin Watts, 1985). Both "Terrorist" and "The Fall of Pan Am 103" were excerpted as cover stories for the New York Times Magazine. Before entering journalism, Emerson served as a professional staff member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Diana Fiedotin
Diana Fiedotin is in the research department of the Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation. Prior to this, she briefly worked as a genealogist for the Disney Institute in Orlando and before that spent 10 years in advertising in Chicago, Atlanta and Orlando. She graduated from Brown University with a degree in international relations. Philanthropically, she is the founder and project director of Lifeline to Argentina and she is on the United Jewish Communities' Argentina Task Force. She is a member of UJC's National Young Leadership Cabinet, within which her assignment is to be one of the two liaisons to JDC (her second year in this position). Locally in Los Angeles, she is involved in the Women's B&P Division. Raised in Atlanta, both of her parents are from Buenos Aires and she has a large extended family still in Argentina that she sees at least once a year.
Arna Poupko Fisher
Arna Poupko Fisher, a noted lecturer and educator, was the first individual to serve as a permanent, full-time, scholar in residence for a federation when she began her pioneering work as the Judaic consultant of the Montreal federation in 1993. In this capacity, Fisher was the scholar, teacher and advisor within the federation and its 20 constituent agencies. The prestigious Avi Chai Foundation celebrated this work when it awarded this position the first prize for "Excellent Community Initiatives to Strengthen Jewish Commitment." Fisher taught classical Jewish texts to communal leaders and professionals in an open and inviting atmosphere, encouraging diversity of thought and approaches. Fisher studied at Yeshiva University, the University of Toronto and McGill University. She is a frequent guest on national radio and television and has published on subjects pertaining to the relationship of Jewish law to contemporary society. Fisher serves as faculty for the Wexner Heritage Foundation; The Wexner Graduate Fellows program, and has taught at both the University of Toronto and McGill University. Fisher is currently on the faculty of the Department of Jewish Studies at the University of Cincinnati, where she teaches bible and law.
Al Franken
Al Franken is an Emmy Award-winning television writer and producer, New York Times best-selling author, and Grammy-winning comedian. In 1975, Franken was part of the original writing staff that created the groundbreaking late night show Saturday Night Live. Franken remained with the original show until 1980 and then returned in 1985. He stayed for another 10 years, leaving after the 1994-95 season. He was recognized for such characterizations as the one-man mobile uplink unit and Stuart Smalley, the new age cable TV host. Smalley was the subject of Franken's first book, "I'm Good Enough, I'm Smart Enough and Doggone It, People Like Me" (Dell, 1992). It provided the basis for a movie that Franken wrote and starred in for Paramount Pictures, "Stuart Saves His Family," which received "two thumbs up" from Siskel and Ebert. Franken co-wrote the 1994 Touchstone Pictures movie "When a Man Loves a Woman" starring Andy Garcia and Meg Ryan. Franken is also the author of "Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot and Other Observations" (Dell, 1999); "Why Not Me: The Making and Unmaking of the Franken Presidency" (Dell, 2000) which chronicles the rise and fall of Al Franken, 43rd President; "Oh, the Things I Know!: A Guide to Success, or Failing That, Happiness" (Dutton, 2002); and "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right" (Penguin, 2003), all of which were on The New York Times bestseller list.
Howard Friedman
Howard Friedman is managing partner of Lanx Capital, a hedge fund advisory firm. He is involved in many civic, charitable and political causes. Among those causes he serves as pPresident of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, an officer of the Associated Jewish Federation of Baltimore and on the board of AIPAC. He is married to Judge Chaya Friedman and has four children.
Scott Friedman
Scott Friedman, a motivational humorist based in Denver, Colo., is two-time past president of the Colorado Speakers Association, and has earned the CSP designation (Certified Speaking Professional), the highest earned designation awarded by the National Speakers Association. He currently serves on its national board of directors as vice president. He is also on the national board of directors for Camp To Belong, a non-profit organization dedicated to reuniting siblings in foster care. In 1983 Friedman founded Black Tie Optional, a distinctive Jewish singles group responsible for over 20 marriages. He has been involved in Jewish singles programming ever since. Friedman is the author of several books, including "Punchlines, Pitfalls, and Powerful Programs" (Scott Friedman, 2001), "Using Humor for a Change" (Scott Friedman, 1998), and "Only the Best in Success" (Alan Press, 1995).
Sen. Bill Frist
Sen. Bill Frist is a member of the U.S. Senate representing the state of Tennessee. He was first elected in 1994 and was the only challenger to defeat a full-term incumbent that election and the first practicing physician elected to the Senate since 1928. On November 7, 2000, Frist was elected to a second term in the United States Senate by the largest margin ever received by a candidate for statewide election in the history of Tennessee. In 2000, he was unanimously elected chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) for the 107th Congress and in December 2002 he was unanimously elected Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate (108th Congress). Under his leadership as Chairman of the NRSC, for the first time in history, the party of the President won back majority control of the U.S. Senate in a midterm election. He currently serves on the following committees: Finance; Rules; Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP). Born and raised in Nashville, Frist received his BA from Princeton University, graduated with honors from Harvard Medical School, and remains board certified in both general surgery and heart surgery.
Misha Galperin
Misha Galperin is the executive vice president of The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington. Galperin, formerly chief operating officer at UJA-Federation of New York, came to this country in 1976 and is from Odessa in the former Soviet Union. He was trained as a psychologist at New York University, and held several positions in this field in the New York area, first entering the Jewish vocational profession in 1988. He has since become an expert and veteran of the federation network, holding leadership positions at the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Service, the New York Association for New Americans (NYANA), several Jewish community centers, and the UJA-Federation of New York, which he joined in 1997.
Peter Geffen
Peter Geffen is the founder of the Abraham Joshua Heschel School in New York City and is currently serving as the educational and organizational consultant to schools across the continent that are seeking to model all or portions of their programs on the Heschel School in New York. He also serves as a consultant to The Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education, which is providing start-up funding to many of these projects. Geffen's professional training spans the worlds of religious education, Jewish history and psychotherapy. His background includes involvement in many of the issues of social justice, including service as an assistant to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He was also a civilian volunteer in Israel during the Six-Day War and, since that time, has been involved in several projects promoting a greater understanding between Arabs and Jews in the quest for peace in the Middle East.
Rabbi Shoshana Gelfand
Shoshana Boyd Gelfan is the vice president and acting director of the Wexner Heritage Foundation. She is a Conservative rabbi, ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1993, where she studied as a Wexner Fellow. She graduated magna cum laude from Bryn Mawr College and was a MacCracken Fellow at New York University, where she has done graduate work towards a doctoral degree in Talmud. She is a frequent scholar at conferences across the country such as UJC Young Leadership Retreats, CAJE, the National Jewish Choral Festival, HUC's Kollel and the Jewish Leadership Forum. In addition, she has begun working in Europe, teaching in England at the Limmud Conference, and at the American-German Young Leaders Conference in Hamburg. She currently serves on the advisory boards of PlanItJewish, The Institute for Contemporary Midrash and Project Kesher (an organization which teaches Judaism to women in the Former Soviet Union) and she is a member of the UJC National Young Leadership Cabinet.
Blu Greenberg
Blu Greenberg is an author/lecturer and has published widely on contemporary subjects of feminism, Orthodoxy and the Jewish family as well as on other subjects of scholarly interest. Greenberg received a B.A. from Brooklyn College in political science, an M.A. from City University in clinical psychology, a B.R.E. in Religious Education from Yeshiva University and a M.S. from Yeshiva University Revel Graduate School in Jewish History. Her books include "How to Run a Traditional Jewish Household" (Simon & Schuster, 1985), "Black Bread: Holocaust Poems" (Ktav Publishing, 1994), and "On Women and Judaism: A View from Tradition" (Jewish Publication Society, 1990).
Rabbi Yitz Greenberg
Rabbi Irving Greenberg is president of Chaverim Kol Yisrael/Jewish Life Network, a Judy and Michael Steinhardt Foundation. JLN's mission is to enrich the inner life of American Jews through innovative projects in education, culture and religion. Rabbi Greenberg was founder and now President Emeritus of CLAL, The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, the leading organization in intra-Jewish dialogue and Jewish unity. Prior to the founding of CLAL, Rabbi Greenberg served as rabbi of the Riverdale Jewish Center, professor at Yeshiva University and founded and chaired the department of Jewish Studies at City College. He was instrumental in the pioneering of many organizations of American Jewish life including SAR Academy, a day school; Yavneh, the National Religious Students Association; the Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry; and the Association for Jewish Studies, the professional organization for Jewish studies in American universities. He has published numerous articles and monographs on Jewish thought and religion. His book, "The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays" is a philosophy of Judaism based on an analysis of the Sabbath and holidays.
Rachel Greenwald
Rachel Greenwald, M.B.A., is the author of the New York Times best-seller "Find a Husband After 35 Using What I Learned at Harvard Business School" (Random House, 2003), which has been translated into 16 languages. Greenwald has been featured on The Today Show, CNN Headline News, Oprah Magazine, People Magazine, NPR radio, etc. She is a dating coach, seminar instructor, wife and mother of three. Her Web site is www.FindAHusbandAfter35.com.
Dr. Reuven Hazan
Reuven Hazan is currently a visiting professor in the political science department at the Institute for the Study of Modern Israel at Emory University. An Israeli political scientist, Dr. Hazan is a ninth generation Israeli, born in Jerusalem. Following service as an instructor in the Israeli Air Force, Dr. Hazan studied political science at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and earned his doctorate from Columbia University in New York. Dr. Hazan was an assistant to the Israeli parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, with its then Chairman Abba Eban. He was a reporter for the Jerusalem Post and worked the editorial desk. He also served with the Israeli Foreign Office as the Academic Officer to the Consulate General of Israel in New York. Dr. Hazan is on the faculty of the political science department at Hebrew University. His research focuses on the dramatic political changes in Israel.
Steve Hoffman
Stephen H. Hoffman, president and chief executive officer of United Jewish Communities, is a graduate of Dickinson College and received his MSW from the University of Maryland and a Master's in Jewish studies from the Baltimore Hebrew University. He is also a graduate of the Council of Jewish Federation's executive recruitment and education program (FEREP). He began his career at the Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland in 1974, and served as director of social planning and research and assistant director before becoming president. He is the founding director of the Council for Initiatives in Jewish Education and serves on the Visiting Committee of the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University. He is a board member of the Musical Arts Association (the Cleveland Orchestra), the Mandel Foundation and the David and Inez Myers Foundation. He is a past board member of the Greater Cleveland Roundtable, an organization devoted to promoting racial harmony in the city of Cleveland. In May of 2002, he was awarded a Doctor of Humane Letters from the Baltimore Hebrew University, and in March of 2003, he was the first recipient of the Fuchs Mizrachi School's Guardian of Zion Award in Cleveland, Ohio.
Avi Jorisch
Avi J. Jorisch is a Soref research fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy specializing in Arab politics and Islamic society. He holds a B.A. in history from Binghamton University and an M.A. in Islamic history from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. In 2000-01, Jorisch spent 14 months in Egypt studying Arabic and Islamic culture through the Center for Arabic Studies Abroad (CASA) program at the American University in Cairo. He also earned a Certificate in Arabic in an intensive summer program at the Arab world's preeminent institution of Sunni Islamic learning, al-Azhar University. Recently, he returned from a research trip to Qatar and Lebanon, where he interviewed officials of the twenty-four-hour Arabic news station al-Jazeera and members of Hizballah. Jorisch has authored a number of policy briefs for The Washington Institute, including "The Language of Terror," "U.S. Military Operations and the Question of Ramadan," and "Hizballah's Vision of the Israel-Lebanon Border." He is currently writing a monograph on Hizballah and its television station, al-Manar.
Jeff Kaye
Jeff Kaye has served as director of financial resource development (FRD) for the Jewish Agency for Israel for the last three years. He implemented the merger of the marketing department with FRD and is the director of the combined departments. In this capacity Kaye also holds responsibility for the Israel Education Fund, the U.S. Government Grant as well as all marketing aspects throughout JAFI. Prior to joining the Jewish Agency, he served as the director of the United Israel Appeal's Israel Office. Abroad, Kaye was the community emissary (shaliach) to Detroit from 1993-97. In addition to his work at the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit, Kaye was responsible for all emissaries (shlichim) in the midwest region of the United States. Kaye also has extensive experience in special education, both as a teacher and supervisor. From 1989-93 he was the principal of the Kiryat Ye'arim Youth Aliyah Village, after having served for seven years as a teacher for children with special needs in schools in Jerusalem. Kaye made aliyah in 1981 and still serves as a reserve soldier in the Israel Defense Forces.
Idit Klein
Idit Klein is the executive director of Keshet, an organization of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Jews and allies in Boston that works to create a fully inclusive and welcoming Jewish community. Klein has worked as an activist on queer and other social justice issues in Jerusalem and in Boston. Currently, she is a board member of the Jewish Organizing Initiative and is a recipient of a Joshua Venture Fellowship for her work with Keshet.
Rabbi Irwin Kula
A leading voice for religious pluralism, Rabbi Irwin Kula, president of CLAL -- The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, is an authority on recent trends in culture and new forms of religious and spiritual expression. Since 9/11, Kula has focused on the role of religion in contemporary America, and was a commentator for a Frontline feature (PBS-TV) entitled "Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero." An expert on popular culture and what animates people, he hosted a recent 13-part series for public television called "Simple Wisdom With Irwin Kula," and just completed an independent film called "Time for a New God," which explores God's place in our society. He has appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and the PBS program Religion & Ethics Newsweekly, which named him one of the 10 People to Watch who are helping to shape the American spiritual landscape. He was also cited by Fast Company magazine as one of the 17 new economy leaders.
Matthew Levitt
Matthew A. Levitt is a senior fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, specializing in terrorism and U.S. policy. For the past three years, Levitt served as a FBI analyst providing tactical and strategic analysis in support of counterterrorism operations. His special focus has been on fundraising and logistical support networks for Middle East terrorist groups. In addition, he has participated as a team member in a number of crisis situations, including the terrorist threat surrounding the turn of the millennium and the September 11 attacks. Prior to joining the FBI, Levitt was a Soref fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy focusing on Arab-Israeli peace negotiations, Palestinian politics and society, and terrorism. In 1997-98, Levitt served as a Graduate Research Fellow at Harvard Law School's Program on Negotiation, during which time he conducted extensive field research in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Levitt has written extensively about terrorism, the Middle East and Arab-Israeli peace negotiations.
Dr. Deborah Lipstadt
Dr. Deborah E. Lipstadt is Dorot Professor of Modern Jewish and Holocaust Studies at Emory University in Atlanta, where she directs the Institute for Jewish Studies. Her book "Denying the Holocaust: The Growing Assault on Truth and Memory" (Free Press/Macmillan, 1993) is the first full-length study of history of those who attempt to deny the Holocaust. As an historical consultant to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Lipstadt helped design the section of the museum dedicated to the American response to the Holocaust. In 2000 President Clinton reappointed her to a second term on the United States Holocaust Memorial Council. From 1996 through 1999 she served as a member of the United States State Department Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom Abroad. Dr. Lipstadt also wrote "Beyond Belief: the American Press and the Coming of the Holocaust" (Free Press/MacMilllan, 1986, 1993). The book, an examination of how the American press covered the news of the persecution of European Jewry between the years 1933 and 1945, addresses the question "what did the American public know and when did they know it?" She has taught at UCLA and Occidental College in Los Angeles, and in May 2000 she received an Honorary Doctorate from Yeshiva University.
Frank Luntz
Frank Luntz is one of the most honored political and communication professionals in America today. Time magazine named him one of "50 of America' s most promising leaders aged 40 and under." More media outlets have turned to Dr. Luntz for polling and consulting than to any other political pollster. In the 2000 election cycle, Luntz conducted almost two-dozen focus groups for MSNBC and CNBC, including live sessions following each night of both party conventions and presidential debates. He was a primary night and election night commentator for The News with Brian Williams on MSNBC, and his "l00 Days, 1000 Voices" segments for MSNBC was given the coveted Emmy Award in 2001. Over the past four years, Luntz has conducted focus group sessions for all three networks and two of the three cable news channels. In addition, he is currently a consultant for the popular NBC drama "The West Wing." The "Instant Response" focus group technique Luntz has pioneered was profiled on "60 Minutes" in 1998. Luntz has written, supervised and conducted more than 500 surveys, focus groups and Instant Response sessions for corporate and public affairs clients in ten countries since forming his company in 1992. From 1989 until 1996, he was an adjunct assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He has also taught at Harvard and George Washington University. An accomplished writer, Luntz'a book, "Candidates, Consultants & Campaigns," addresses the American electoral process. 1993, Luntz was named a Fellow at Harvard University's Institute of Politics, the second youngest individual ever to receive this honor.
David Makovsky
David Makovsky recently joined The Washington Institute as a Senior Fellow and director of the Project of America, Israel and the Peace Process. He comes to Washington as an award-winning journalist who has covered the Middle East peace process since 1989. Makovsky is the former executive editor of the Jerusalem Post, where he also served as diplomatic correspondent for more than seven years (1989-97). In addition, he was the diplomatic correspondent for Israel's leading daily Ha'aretz (1997-99) and had primary responsibility there for covering the peace process, as he did at the Post. Currently, he is a contributing editor to U.S. News and World Report and has served as the magazine's special Jerusalem correspondent for the last 11 years. In July 1994, upon the personal intervention of then-Secretary of State Warren Christopher, Makovsky became the first journalist writing for an Israeli publication to visit Damascus. He is author of "Making Peace with the PLO: The Rabin Government's Road to the Osio Accord" (Westview Press/Harper Collins in cooperation with The Washington Institute, 1996) and is also a contributor to "Triumph Without Victory" (Randam House/Time Books, 1992), a retrospective on the Gulf War. He wrote about the peace process for Middle East Contemporary Survey of 1995, published by Tel Aviv University's Dayan Center for Middle East Studies.
Mark Mellman
Mark Mellman is one of the nation's leading public opinion researchers and communication strategists. He is CEO of The Mellman Group, a polling and consulting firm whose clients include leading political figures, Fortune 500 companies and some of the nation's most important public interest groups. Mellman has helped guide the campaigns of some sixteen U.S. senators, over two-dozen members of Congress and four governors, as well as numerous state and local officials. The firm's string of upset victories has led the Boston Globe to call The Mellman Group Washington's "hottest" political consulting firm, and the New Republic describes Mellman as "a leading Democratic technologist." As a consultant to the Democratic Congressional Leadership, Mellman plays a central role in developing Democratic strategies on the budget, energy, health care, the environment, and education. In addition, Mellman works with a variety of public interest organizations ranging from the American Cancer Society to the AFL-CIO, the World Wildlife Fund and the League of Women Voters. His groundbreaking research has helped define how nonprofits and businesses can use the Internet for online communications, organizing and fundraising. He has served as a consultant on politics to CBS News, a presidential debate analyst for PBS, a contributing analyst for "The Hotline," National Journal's daily briefing on politics, and is currently on the faculty of The George Washington University's Graduate School of Political Management.
Ruth Messinger
Ruth Messinger is the president and executive director of the American Jewish World Service. The AJWS is an independent, not-for-profit organization founded in 1985 to help alleviate poverty, hunger and disease among the people of the world regardless of race, religion or nationality. Messinger manages and participates in the program's outreach and political/economic development programs in underdeveloped countries. She has developed a particular interest and expertise in the AIDS crisis in Africa. Her organization provides humanitarian aid, technical assistance and skilled volunteers to local grassroots groups in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, Russia and the Ukraine in projects involving health, education, agriculture, economics development and human rights. Messinger served on the New York City Council for 12 years and is a former borough president of Manhattan and a former Democratic nominee for mayor of New York.
Aaron Miller
For the last two decades, Miller served at the Department of State as an adviser to six Secretaries of State, where he helped formulate U.S. policy on the Middle East and the Arab-Israel peace process, most recently as the senior adviser for Arab-Israeli Negotiations. He also served as the Deputy Special Middle East Coordinator for Arab-Israeli negotiations, Senior Member of the State Department's Policy Planning Staff, in the Bureau of Intelligence and Research and in the Office of the Historian. He has received the Department's Distinguished, Superior, and Meritorious Honor Awards. In 1982 and 1983, he was a Council on Foreign Relations fellow and a resident scholar at the Georgetown Center for Strategic and International Studies. In 1984 he served a temporary tour at the American Embassy in Amman, Jordan. Between 1998 and 2000, Miller served on the United States Holocaust Memorial Council. He has written three books on the Middle East and lectured widely at universities and Middle East symposia across the country. Since becoming President of Seeds of Peace, he has been seen on national media outlets around the country speaking about Seeds of Peace and the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi
Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi is the founder and president of The Israel Project, a non-profit organization that works for the survival of Israel and the Jewish people through improving Israel's image in democracies across the globe. Mizrahi is an internationally recognized expert in communications, public opinion research, media and politics. Prior to starting The Israel Project, she worked on winning campaigns across the globe, including in the United States, Russia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Poland and other nations. The founder and president of Laszlo & Associates, Inc., a strategic communications, public policy and political training company, Mizrahi has worked on projects with the White House, President Clinton, Vice President Gore, dozens of United States senators, and more than 160 members of Congress. In 1994, Mizrahi was the first woman ever to run for the United States Congress from the 2nd Congressional District of North Carolina. She is still active in Democratic politics. Mizrahi, who wrote a weekly column on politics for The Daily Record for more than six years, has published more than 300 columns on presidential politics, Congress, public policy and political campaigns. Mizrahi previously served as chairman of the DC Jewish Community Center's National Institute for Public Leadership. She is currently a board member of the International Association of Political Consultants, National Jewish Democratic Council and Bayit Chadash. She chairs her local UJC campaign and is also a member of the United Jewish Communities' Young Leadership Cabinet and The National Press Club. She is co-director of the Mizrahi Family Charitable Trusts.
Dr. Khaleel Mohammed
Dr. Khaleel Mohammed is professor of religion at San Diego State University and a specialist in Islamic Studies. He is also the director and chief researcher at the Montreal-based Religion Research Foundation. He has studied at both traditional Islamic institutions and Western universities. He received a Saudi government scholarship and studied at the Kulliyat al Shariah, Muhammad bin Saud University, in Riyadh. He completed his MA in religion (majoring in Judaism and Islam, Concordia University), and then his Ph.D. (Islamic law) at McGill, with an FCAR (Fonds pour les chercheurs et aide a la recherche) fellowship from the Government of Quebec. From July 2001-August 2003, he was at Brandeis as that university's first Kraft-Hiatt postdoctoral fellow in Islamic Studies. His area of research was on the imagery of the Jew in classical Islamic literature. In the summer of 2003, he served as faculty at Brandeis in the Berkshires, and the Wexner Foundation graduate summer school. Dr. Mohammed has published books in Arabic and English as well as several articles in scholarly journals. Perhaps what makes Dr. Mohammed truly unique is that he is one of the few Muslim scholars accepted by both the Sunni and Shia sects of Islam, and that, as an imam and scholar, he actively supports the cause of Israel, and has presented his views at several conferences and public forums.
Mike Murphy
Mike Murphy is a senior partner of The Murphy Pintak Gautier Hudome Agency, Inc., and is one of the Republican party's most successful political consultants. Murphy has handled strategy and media for over 24 successful senatorial and gubernatorial campaigns. In addition to his political work, Murphy advises several Fortune 500 corporations and leading interest groups. He has advised leaders in five foreign countries. Murphy often provides commentary on politics in the media. He is a frequent guest host on CNN's Crossfire, and has appeared on Meet the Press, CNN's The Capital Gang, Face the Nation, This Week with Sam and Cokie, Nightline and The News Hour with Jim Lehrer. He writes a biweekly column on presidential politics for the National Journal's influential Hotline, and is also a frequent contributor to The Weekly Standard. Murphy attended the Edmund Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and in 2001 he was an Institute of Politics Fellow at Harvard University's JFK School of Government.
Joshua Neuman
Joshua Neuman became Heeb Magazine's publisher in February 2003 and its editor-in-chief in September 2003. He received a B.A. at Brown University in 1994 and an M.T.S. at Harvard Divinity School in 1997. He has taught undergraduate philosophy classes at New York University and has served as the museum educator, and later as a consultant, at the Museum of Jewish Heritage: A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in Manhattan. The LA Weekly called him "one part scholar, one part Beastie Boy." He lives in downtown Manhattan in a building his father could have bought for $12 in 1974.
Kate O'Beirne
Kate O'Bierne is National Review's Washington Editor and writes principally about Congress, politics, and domestic policy. She also exlusively appears on CNN's Capital Gang. Before joining National Review in 1995, O'Beirne was vice president of government relations at The Heritage Foundation, responsible for keeping Washington policymakers abreast of Heritage proposals and research findings in all areas of the Foundation's study. O'Beirne previously served as Heritage's deputy director of domestic policy studies, where she supervised studies in the areas of health care, welfare, education and housing. O'Beirne also worked for the New York Senate, received her J.D. degree from St. John's University and practiced law in New York.
Dr. Kerry Olitzky
Kerry Olitzy is the executive director of the Jewish Outreach Institute, a leader in the development of Jewish community-based outreach programming. Olitzky is also an ordained rabbi. He is formerly the national dean of adult Jewish learning and living at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. Dr. Olitzy is the author of numerous books and articles on Jewish spirituality, healing and Jewish religious practice. Some of his most recent work include "Pirke Avot: A Modern Commentary on Jewish Ethics" (1996 UAHC Press, editor), "How to Handbook for Jewish Living" (1994, KTAV Publishing House, Inc.), and "Sacred Intentions: Daily Inspiration to Strengthen the Spirit, Based on Jewish Wisdom" (1999 Jewish Lights Publishing).
Lori Palatnik
Lori Palatnik is a communications and advertising specialist originally from Toronto, Canada. She studied at EYAHT and Neve Yerushalayim College for Jewish Women in Jerusalem. Palatnik hosted the television show "The Jewish Journal" in Toronto, and has been awarded national recognition for excellence in radio copywriting and production. She has been a guest on numerous radio and television talk shows, lecturing throughout the U.S. and Israel explaining the beauty and depth of Judaism. In addition, Palatnik has written several books, including "Friday Night and Beyond - The Shabbat Experience Step-by-Step" (Jason Aronson), and "Remember My Soul" (Leviathan Press), which explains the Jewish concepts of soul and the afterlife and a includes a bereavement guide. She was the contributor to the anthology, "Jewish Women Speak About Jewish Matters" (Targum/Feldheim Publishers), and to the anthology, "Heaven on Earth" (Targum/Feldheim). Her recently released book: "Gossip - Ten Pathways to Eliminate It From Your Life and Transform Your Soul" (Simcha Press) was featured on "Dr. Laura" and FoxNews.com. For the past 10 years she was the rebbetzin of The Village Shul, a unique family synagogue in Toronto's Forest Hill, and is now the Educational and Program Director of Aish-Ahavas Yisroel in Denver.
Dr. Judith Plaskow
Dr. Judith Plaskow has written two books, "Sex, Sin and Grace: Women's Experience and the Theologies of Reinhold Niebuhr and Paul Tillich" (University Press of America 1980) and "Standing Again at Sinai: Judaism from a Feminist Perspective" (Harper San Francisco 1990) and co-edited three others: "Women and Religion" (American Academy of Religion 1973), "Womanspirit Rising: A Feminist Reader in Religion" (Harper Collins 1979), and "Weaving the Visions: New Patterns in Feminist Spirituality" (Harper San Francisco 1989). She has also published numerous articles in edited volumes and journals. She is currently working on a theology of sexuality entitled "Just Sex." Dr. Plaskow lectures widely on feminist theology in the United States and Europe. She co-founded The Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion and co-edited it for its first 10 years. She is past president of the American Academy of Religion.
Marc Platt
Marc Platt served as president of production for three movie studios (Orion, TriStar and Universal) and now heads Marc Platt Productions. His recent productions include Broadway's new smash hit musical "Wicked" and both hit "Legally Blonde" films. He has held numerous leadership positions in the Jewish community and is a popular speaker at UJF events around the country.
Dennis Prager
Dennis Prager is a prolific voice throughout all media outlets. He is one of America's most respected radio talk show hosts and has been broadcasting on KABC Radio in Los Angeles since 1982. Dennis Prager's most recent book, "Happiness Is a Serious Problem," was published in February 1998 by HarperCollins, and appeared on the Los Angeles Times best seller list the week of publication. He is the author of "Think a Second Time, 44 Essays on 44 Subjects" (HarperCollins), and the co-author of two major works about Judaism: "The Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism," now in six languages, and "Why the Jews? The Reason for Antisemitism," regarded by many as the most persuasive explanation of anti-Semitism written. From 1985 to 1995, Prager wrote and published the quarterly journal, Ultimate Issues. Since 1995, he has been writing twice monthly The Prager Perspective. He has engaged in interfaith dialogue with every major religion, and for 10 years he conducted a weekly interfaith dialogue on radio with representatives of virtually every religion in the world. Mr. Prager was a fellow at Columbia University's School of International Affairs, where he did graduate work at the Middle East and Russian Institutes. He has taught Russian and Jewish history at Brooklyn College; and was appointed by President Ronald Reagan to the U.S. Delegation to the Vienna Review Conference on the Helsinki Accords. He holds an honorary doctorate of law from Pepperdine University.
Will Recant
As the Assistant Executive Vice-President of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), William Recant serves as the senior staff person regarding all of JDC's non-sectarian and disaster relief programs. In this capacity, he coordinates projects relating to the rescue, relief, and renewal of Jewish communities worldwide and develops non-sectarian programs. Recant is also the Desk Director for Latin America and Europe Community Development at JDC headquarters in New York, which involves him in the effort to relieve the Argentinean community in crisis. Recant has also worked with U.S. government agencies and congressional members to brief them on issues specific to rescue and relief, and with Private Voluntary Organizations (PVO's) in program coordination, partnership development and cooperation. He has acted as an intermediary to embassies and officials of countries in which JDC is active and has traveled overseas to coordinate and evaluate existing and potential JDC programs in multiple countries. Before joining JDC, Recant was the executive director of the American Association for Ethiopian Jews in Washington, D.C. He worked closely with the Special Israeli Envoy as liaison to the U.S. government in the planning and implementation of Operation Solomon, he established the Congressional Caucus for Ethiopian Jews and he advised State Department officials and members of Congress on Ethiopian Jewry.
Dr. Amy Robbins-Ellison
Dr. Amy Robbins-Ellison is an assistant professor of anesthesiology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and full-time faculty anesthesiologist at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, N.Y. Dr. Ellison's personal saga as a victim of domestic violence has enabled her to speak publicly on the topic on many occasions. She is a member of the Chicago Jewish Task Force on Domestic Abuse.
Hannah Rosenthal
Hannah Rosenthal was raised in Flossmoor, Illinois, the daughter of a strong feminist mother who was active in many political campaigns, and a father who was a Holocaust survivor and a rabbi deeply involved in the civil rights movement. She was a political science and religion major at Mount Holyoke College and the University of Wisconsin, and attended graduate school at Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem, Israel and Los Angeles. After chairing President Clinton's Wisconsin campaign in 1992, the President appointed Rosenthal to be Midwest Regional Director of the United States Department of Health and Human Services in Chicago, where she served for four years. Rosenthal currently heads the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, the national public affairs arm of the organized Jewish community. She serves on many boards of directors, community organizations and has written and edited many articles, studies, books and brochures.
Rabbi Seymour Rossel
Seymour Rossel is the author of 28 books, including "A Child's Bible" (Behrman House 1997), "The Holocaust: The Word and the Jews" (Behrman House 1997), "A Thousand and One Chickens" (UAHC Press 1995), and "Managing the Jewish Classroom" (Torah Aura 1998). Rossel is director of Pathways Foundation and president of Rossel Books. The Pathways Foundation was founded to address the needs of Jewish teenagers and their families through grants, scholarships, resources and advocacy. He was headmaster of Solomon Schecter Academy of Dallas, director of UAHC Press, director of the UAHC Department of Education and the Commission on Reform Jewish Education, vice president of Behrman House and coordinator of the School of Education of HUC-JIR, NY. His latest book is "Bible Dreams: The Spiritual Quest - How the Dreams in the Bible Speak to Us Today" (SPI Books 2001).
Rabbi David Saperstein
Rabbi David Saperstein is the director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. Described in a Washington Post profile as the "quintessential religious lobbyist on Capitol Hill," he represents the national Reform Jewish movement to Congress and the administration. During his 30-year tenure as director of the Center, Rabbi Saperstein has headed several national religious coalitions. He currently co-chairs the Coalition to Preserve Religious Liberty, comprised of over 60 national religious denominations and educational organizations, and serves on the boards of numerous national organizations including the NAACP and People For the American Way. Under Rabbi Saperstein's tutelage, writes J.J. Goldberg in his book, "Jewish Power," the Religious Action Center "has become one of the most powerful Jewish bodies in Washington, second only to AIPAC." The Center not only advocates on a broad range of social justice issues but provides extensive legislative and programmatic materials used by synagogues, federations and Jewish community relations councils nationwide, and coordinates social action education programs that train nearly 3,000 Jewish adults, youth, rabbinic and lay leaders each year. In 1999, Rabbi Saperstein was elected as the first Chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, created by a unanimous vote of Congress. Also an attorney, Rabbi Saperstein teaches seminars in both First Amendment church-state law and in Jewish law at the Georgetown University Law School.
Jonathan Schanzer
Jonathan Schanzer is an analyst at The Washington Institute, specializing in radical Islamic movements. He holds a bachelor's degree in international relations from Emory University and a master's degree in Middle East studies from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he wrote his master's thesis on the modern history of militant Islam. Prior to joining the Institute, Schanzer was a research fellow at the Middle East Forum, a Philadelphia-based think tank. He has also worked for the Truman Institute for the Advancement of Peace in Jerusalem, the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Cable News Network and the Consulate General of Israel in Atlanta. Schanzer has published Middle East-related work in the Wall Street Journal, New Republic, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, Jerusalem Post and Investors Business Daily. He has also appeared on CNN, al-Jazeera, and the Fox News Channel as a Middle East expert. Schanzer is currently working on a study entitled "Al-Qaeda's Affiliates: Exploiting Weak Central Authority in the Arab World."
Rabbi Sidney Schwarz
Rabbi Sidney Schwarz is the founder and president of The Washington Institute for Jewish Leadership and Values, an educational foundation dedicated to the renewal of American Jewish life through the integration of Judaic study with social activism, civic engagement and tikkun olam, repair of the world. He has been instrumental in the creation of all of the Institute's major programs including: Panim el Panim: High School in Washington, the Jewish Civics Initiative and the E Pluribus Unum Project. Rabbi Schwarz previously served as the executive director of the Jewish Community Council of Greater Washington D.C. He is the founding rabbi of Adat Shalom Reconstructionist Congregation in Rockville, Md., where he now is rabbi emeritus. Rabbi Schwarz has been on the faculties of the University of Maryland, Temple University and the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. He has served as faculty for the Wexner Summer Institute and the Whizin Family Education Institute. Rabbi Schwarz is the co-author of "Jewish Civics: A Tikkun Olam/World Repair Manual" (1994) and "Jews, Judaism and Civic Responsibility" (1998). His new book is entitled "Finding a Spiritual Home: How a New Generation of Jews Can Transform the American Synagogue" (Jossey-Bass, 2000). He has also contributed over 70 articles to journals as Moment, Sh'ma and the Reconstructionist, and is a frequent lecturer on Judaism, the American Jewish community and contemporary Jewish affairs.
Dr. Sabi Shabtai
Dr. Shabtai is an internationally recognized authority on terrorism who served as consultant to numerous corporations, airlines, police departments, swat teams, and the U.S. Army and Navy. Born in Israel, he served in the intelligence branch of the Israel Defense Forces and was a member of the Israeli Foreign Service. Earning his doctorate at the University of Chicago, Dr. Shabtai taught political science at several universities, and was a Senior Fellow at the Adlai Stevenson Institute of International Affairs in Chicago specializing in problems of political violence and international terrorism. He is the author of the international bestseller, "Five Minutes To Midnight" which foresaw the growing threat of nuclear terrorism already back in the early eighties. A regular TV and radio commentator, Dr. Shabtai wrote and narrated the video "Travel Without Terror," a safety guide for overseas travelers. A sought-after consultant in the film industry, Dr. Shabtai sold several scripts based on his expertise to the major studios. The hit movie "Passenger 57" is based on his personal hijacking experience. Since the September 11th Attack on the World Trade Center, Dr. Shabtai has been working closely with various law enforcement and intelligence agencies, assisting them in the pursuit of the suspects and in the prevention of further terrorist assaults.
Andrew Siloh-Caroll
Andrew Silow-Carroll is editor in chief of the New Jersey Jewish News. From 1996-1998 he lived in Israel as a Jerusalem Fellow, an international program in Jewish education sponsored by the Mandel Foundation. Later he was a Spielberg Fellow and director of communications of CLAL-The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership. He has also served as the managing editor of the Forward newspaper, the national Jewish weekly, and was the editor of the Washington (D.C.) Jewish Week, senior editor of the bimonthly Moment magazine and a reporter for the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. He has lectured widely on Jewish perspectives in journalism, humor, the arts and material culture.
Jacob Solomon
Jacob Solomon has served as the executive vice president of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation since 1992. He began his affiliation with the Miami federation in 1981. Prior to his appointment as federation's chief executive officer, Solomon served in a variety of positions including director of planning and budgeting and assistant executive vice president overseeing the annual Federation-United Jewish Appeal Campaign. Before coming to the Miami federation, Solomon trained at the Jewish federations in New York and Philadelphia while a student at Yeshiva University's Wurzweiler School of Social Work, where he received his master's degree. He began his studies in Jewish communal service as a recipient of a Federation Executive Recruitment and Education Program (FEREP) scholarship award. He also holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in Oriental Studies from the University of Pennsylvania.
Dr. Ken Stein
Dr. Kenneth W. Stein is the William E. Schatten Professor of Contemporary Middle Eastern History and Israeli Studies at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. For the last decade he has spoken frequently on behalf of UJA and UJC. His areas of expertise include the Arab-Israeli peace process, the history of Zionism and modern Israel, U.S. foreign policy toward the Middle East, Israel-American Jewish relations and the modern Arab world. His scholarly publications include the recently published and highly acclaimed, "Heroic Diplomacy: Sadat, Kissinger, Carter, Begin, and the Quest for Arab-Israeli Peace" (Routledge, 1999) and several other highly acclaimed books. Since 1996 he has written the chapter on the "Arab-Israeli Peace Process," which appears in Middle East Contemporary Survey (Westview Press). In addition, he writes a monthly column on Israeli and Middle Eastern issues, which appears in more than 20 Jewish newspapers across the country. Stein is the recipient of several prestigious scholarly grants and five teaching awards from Emory. Since 1982, he has served as former President Jimmy Carter's adviser on Middle Eastern matters. At Emory, he is presently the director of the Middle East Research Program and the Institute for the Study of Modern Israel. In the Atlanta Jewish community, he is member of Federation's Community Relations Council. He serves on the Board of Trustees of the Anti-Defamation League and the American Jewish Committee. He is on the board of directors of the Ben-Gurion University Chaim Herzog Center for Middle East Peace.
Daniel Sutherland
Daniel W. Sutherland of Virginia is the officer for civil rights and civil liberties, Department of Homeland Security. Prior to this position, Sutherland served as chief of staff and senior counsel to the assistant secretary for civil rights at the Department of Education. He previously served at the White House with the Domestic Policy Council, as well as the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice. Sutherland earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Louisville and earned his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.
Mark Talisman
Mark Talisman was the youngest appointed administrative assistant in the House of Representatives when he became chief assistant to Congressman Charles Vanik of Ohio. In this capacity, he co-authored the Jackson-Vanik amendment to free Soviet Jews twenty-five years ago this year. Talisman is a founding vice chairman of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council and Museum, and was the founding director of the Washington Office of the Council of Jewish Federations, which represented all Jewish federations to the U.S. Congress, administration, diplomatic corps, etc. for 18 years. In this position, he created the Matching Grant program for the Resettlement of Soviet Jews. Talisman is currently president of the Project Judaic Foundation, an organization designed to create world-class exhibits like the Precious Legacy and scrolls from the Dead Sea. He has served for a number of years as consultant to the Hopi Indian Tribe, assisting in the successful transfer of Israeli brackish water technology to sustain commercial farming. His has lead the teams to creat and sustain parliaments in 19 newly emerging democracies including the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Hungary, Poland, Namibia and the Philippines.
Mark Terrill
Mark Terrill recently assumed the role of president of THE ASSOCIATED: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore. He has 19 years of senior-level federation experience, including 10 of those years in Baltimore as president-elect and executive vice president of The Associated. Terrill was nominated and selected to the Mandel Executive Development Program in 1995, a program designed and funded by the Mandel Foundation to prepare a select group of professionals who were identified as the ‘next generation' of Jewish non-profit chief executive officers. He has served as a teacher for the United Jewish Communities at local, regional and national conferences focusing on fundraising and community organization and has been a guest lecturer for the National Society for Fund Raising Executives (NSFRE). Terrill currently serves on the United Way Strategic Planning Committee and was selected for the prestigious Greater Baltimore Committee -- Leadership 2003.
Rabbi Arthur Waskow
Rabbi Arthur Waskow, Ph.D., is director of The Shalom Center, a network of American Jews who draw on Jewish tradition and spirituality to seek peace, pursue justice, heal the earth, and build community. Founded in 1983, the Shalom Center is now a division of ALEPH: Alliance for Jewish Renewal. Rabbi Waskow is the author of numerous books, including "The Freedom Seder," "Seasons of Our Joy," "Down-to-Earth Judaism," "Godwrestling," and "Godwrestling-Round 2." In 1996 at the Habitat II conference, a conference on human settlements, the United Nations named him one of forty Wisdom-Keepers from around the world. In 2001 he was presented the Abraham Joshua Heschel Award for his exceptional contributions to peacemaking in the Jewish tradition. Rabbi Waskow frequently leads Shabbat and weekday explorations for synagogues, campuses, retreat centers and inter-religious gatherings.
Sharon Wechter
Sharon L. Wechter is education director of Temple Sinai in Stamford, Conn. A graduate of HUC-JIR, her 15 years in Jewish education include specialization in family and adult education, composing and performing Jewish music and conducting teacher education workshops. She also develops innovative curricula with her writing partner, Ellen Singer, including the Jewish Values with Harry Potter Activities Curriculum taught at CAJE and recently featured in the London Jewish Chronicle.
Gary Weinstein
Gary Weinstein is the executive vice president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Dallas, the central coordinating and fundraising organization of the Greater Dallas community. He has played a key role in expanding the Jewish community's resources, such as the initiation of the Greater Jewish community capital campaign for the 21st century, which to date has raised $49 million. He led the annual campaign in 2003, which raised $9.3 million, its highest total ever, and acts as steward of the Dallas Jewish Community Foundation, which today manages over $100 million of assets. Weinstein is also a trainer, specializing in campaign techniques and motivational workshops. A graduate of UT Austin, he spent his junior year abroad studying at the University of Tel Aviv. He later received a master's degree from the University of Houston.
Rabbi Avi Weiss
Rabbi Avi Weiss is Senior Rabbi of the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale. He is also the President of AMCHA - the Coalition for Jewish Concerns. AMCHA is an independent, grassroots Jewish organization dedicated to raising a voice of conscience on behalf of endangered Jews. A full-time Judaic studies faculty member at Stern College, Yeshiva University, Rabbi Weiss is co-mentor and co-founder of the Meorot and Torat Miriam Fellowships, which were created to inspire young Modern Orthodox men and women to enter into professional Jewish religious leadership.
Dov Zakheim
President Bush appointed Dov S. Zakheim as the Pentagon's comptroller in May 2001. Zakheim previously served in a number of key positions in government and private business. Most recently, he was corporate vice president of System Planning Corp., a technology, research and analysis firm based in Arlington, Va. He also served as chief executive officer of SPC International Corp., a subsidiary specializing in political, military and economic consulting. During the 2000 presidential campaign, he served as a senior foreign advisor to then-Governor Bush. Zakheim studied at Columbia University, London School of Economics, and earned his doctorate in economics and politics at St. Anthony's College, University of Oxford, where he was a gradate fellow in programs of both the National Science Foundation and Columbia College. Zakheim has been an adjunct professor at the National War College, Yeshiva University, Columbia University and Trinity College, Hartford, Conn., where he was a presidential scholar. Zakheim has written, lectured and provided media commentary on national defense and foreign policy issues domestically and internationally. He is the author of "Flight of the Lavi: Inside a U.S.-Israeli Crisis" (Brassey's, 1996), "Congress and National Security in the Post-Cold War Era" (The Nixon Center, 1998), "Toward a Fortress Europe?" (Center for Strategic and International Studies, 2000), and numerous other articles and chapters.
Jack Zeller
Jack Zeller is president and co-founder of Kulanu, Inc., a private, non-profit organization that helps dispersed Jews get back to their religion and to Israel. The organization, which means "all of us" in Hebrew, was started in 1994 and has a quarterly newsletter and Web site (www.kulanu.org) dedicated to sharing information about dispersed Jewish populations. Dr. Zeller's interest in apparently "unkown" Jews began in 1985 when he joined the Washington Association for Ethiopian Jews. Subsequently, he and his wife, Dr. Diane L Zeller, became members of the board of directors of the American Association for Ethiopian Jews. After Operation Solomon in 1991, the Zellers decided to investigate reports of other communities who were Jewish but overlooked by distance or their non-European character. In 1992, they met Rabbi Avichail, the Founder of Amishav in Israel, and began to help his programs of helping otherwise unknown Jewish communities, and afterward founded Kalanu. Dr. Zeller was previously a physician in Silver Spring, Md..
David Zurawik
David Zurawik, assistant professor of Communication and Media Studies at Goucher College, attended St. John's University for his B.A, University of Wisconsin-Madison for his M.A; and University of Maryland for his Ph.D. Professor Zurawik published "The Jews of Prime Time" (Brandeis University Press, 2003). He has also published articles in American Journalism Review, Esquire, T.V. Guide, and FineLine. Professor Zurawik is currently a television critic for the Baltimore Sun newspaper. He has also worked as a television critic for the Dallas Times Herald, and as a feature writer for the Detroit Free Press. His courses include Children and Television; Media Ethics; Introduction to Popular Culture; History of American Broadcasting; and Introduction to Mass Communication.
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