Dr. Daniel Polisar

Daniel Polisar is the co-founder and executive vice president of Shalem College in Jerusalem, Israel’s first liberal arts college. He previously served as the president of the Shalem Center from 2002-2013 and also as its director of research, academic director, and editor-in-chief of its journal, Azure. From 2006 to 2009, he served as the founding chairman, within the Office of the Israeli Prime Minister, of the National Council for the Commemoration of the Legacy of Theodor Herzl. Dr. Polisar received his BA in politics from Princeton University and his PhD in government from Harvard University, where he was the recipient of Truman and Fulbright scholarships, as well as of a Mellon Fellowship. His research interests include Zionist history and thought, Israeli constitutional development, and the history and philosophy of higher education.

Dr. Avital Levi

Tel Aviv University

Avital H. Levi received her PhD in philosophy from the University of Arizona. Her dissertation proposed an original theory of moral obligation in the sentimentalist tradition of David Hume. Her research centers on the intersection between ethics and epistemology, and she is currently writing a book on the role of loyalty in the ethical and political theory of the Hebrew Bible. Dr. Levi is a postdoctoral fellow at the Safra Center for Ethics at Tel Aviv University. She holds a BA in philosophy from Princeton University and an MA in philosophy from Ben Gurion University, and she studied Torah at Migdal Oz, Nishmat, and Herzog College. She lives in Jerusalem with her husband Eliyahu and their three children.

Ricky Maman

Ricky Maman is a Research Fellow at Kohelet Policy Forum, and the Economic Commentator of Makor Rishon Magazine. She co-founded 'Hador Haba: Parents for Choice in Education' and 'Taharut — The Movement for Freedom in labor'. Ricky holds a bachelor's degree in psychology and filmography from Tel Aviv University, a degree in education and a teaching certificate from Herzog College, and a master's degree in public policy from Hebrew University. She was formerly an academic director at The Tikvah Fund, processes Manager at "Tovanot", and project Manager at the Jewish Statesmanship center.

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