The Jewish New Media Innovation Fund is pleased to introduce its six-member Advisory Council, consisting of experts in the fields of digital media, Jewish life, and youth engagement. These advisors closely reviewed and discussed the top 30 proposals and then recommended the nine projects that will receive over $500,000 in funding and technical support from the fund.
Andrew Mandel, Teach For America^
As Teach For America’s vice president of interactive learning and engagement, Andrew heads a team that leverages multimedia and web tools to enhance Teach For America’s teacher preparation and development model. Since 2002, he has played a chief role in creating the textbooks and training sessions for the organization’s five-week summer institute; filming and producing a four-part DVD series on student motivation; constructing systems to define and gauge ongoing teacher performance; developing a reflective problem-solving model to accelerate teacher improvement; developing three online courses on backward-design and a bank of excellent model tools from around the country; and building a team of national designers focused on the ongoing professional development of corps members and staff.
Over the past three years, he has also worked closely with the Schusterman Family Foundation to create the REALITY Israel Experience, helping an annual cohort of corps members gain perspective on their future in the movement for educational equity.
Ben Elowitz, Wetpaint^
Ben is co-founder and CEO of Wetpaint, a media company with an audience of 10 million monthly unique users and partner relationships with Fox, Showtime, HBO, Microsoft, Turner and many more. Ben is also the author of Digital Quarters, a blog that examines the future of digital media and publishing.
His work has been featured on Huffington Post, TechCrunch, AllThingsD, paidContent.org and CNBC.com, among others. Prior to Wetpaint, he co-founded Blue Nile (NILE), the largest online retailer of luxury goods. Prior to Blue Nile, he was an early employee at Fatbrain.com (FATB), an e-commerce company that went public in 1998 and was sold to Barnes & Noble in 1999. Ben is an angel investor in a number of companies, including ICanHasCheezburger, and is a frequent conference speaker on digital media, user generated content, and entrepreneurship.
David Bryfman, The Jewish Education Project^
David is currently the Director of the New Center for Collaborative Leadership at The Jewish Education Project (formerly the Board of Jewish Education of Greater New York-SAJES). David recently completed his Ph.D. Education and Jewish Studies at New York University, focusing on Jewish adolescent identity development and experiential Jewish Education. He is also a graduate of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship Program.
Prior to moving to New York, David worked in formal and informal Jewish educational institutions in Australia, Israel, and North America. David has most recently worked for JEXNET, MAKOM and the Israel Caravan for Democracy as an Israel Educator, and is currently an educational consultant for the iCenter.
Jason Hirschhorn, Entrepreneur, Former Co-president of MySpace^
Jason Hirschhorn is an entrepreneur most comfortable at the intersection between entertainment and technology. He was formerly CEO of his first venture, Mischief New Media; Chief Digital Officer of MTV Networks; President of Sling Media; and most recently Co-President of MySpace. Jason is also an investor in Howcast, Buzz Media, 5 to 1 and other startups. He was also recently elected to the board of MGM Holdings Inc.
Kari Dunn Saratovsky, Case Foundation^
As Vice President of Social Innovation at the Case Foundation, Kari Dunn Saratovsky brings with her more than a decade of experience in the government and nonprofit sectors. As a member of the senior leadership team, Kari helps set the programmatic direction of the Foundation and manages cross-sector partnerships that help strengthen civic engagement and volunteerism, promote participatory philanthropy and leverage technology to accelerate new approaches to giving and philanthropy. She also serves as publisher of the Foundation’s blog, Social Citizens.
Prior to joining the Case Foundation, Saratovsky served as Executive Director of the President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation, a presidential commission to support and expand volunteer service throughout the country and around the world. Previously, she was White House Liaison and Advisor to the CEO at the Corporation for National and Community Service, the parent agency of the AmeriCorps program and other national service initiatives. Saratovsky first began addressing national policy issues as a Legislative Assistant on Capitol Hill and received her B.A. in political science and public policy at Indiana University. In addition to writing and speaking on the Foundation’s areas of expertise, Kari is an avid volunteer and currently serves on the boards of Mobilize.org and Repair the World.
Lisa Colton, Darim Online^
Lisa is the founder and president of Darim Online, a nonprofit that helps Jewish organizations align their work for success in the digital age. Lisa has worked with hundreds of congregations to improve their online presence and use social media tools to engage, inspire, and educate.
She is a graduate of Stanford University and Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies and has served on the boards of University of Vermont Hillel, Congregation Beth Israel’s Early Childhood Center, and CAJE. She is the recipient of Hillel’s Exemplar of Excellence award and the Jewish Communal Service Association’s Young Professional Award.
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