A tribe of scribes weighing in on life’s complexities through a Jewish lens. Eighteen writers who’re inspired by the concept of Tikkun Olam: Doing our part to repair the world.

Unlock Congress is a new book and non-partisan effort geared toward reforming the rules, in order to steer our warped congressional process back onto the rails.Most members of Congress work hard and make genuine sacrifices to represent the rest of us. Sadly, however, they are now trapped in a skewed system where wrongheaded rules distort the process, preventing them from promoting the country's general welfare. Once in office, our would-be legislators are forced to behave like cash-chasing, election-obsessed hamsters, sprinting atop a greased political wheel that is pegged to the maximum speed setting – with no “off” switch.Rather than narrowly affixing blame to individual politicians, Unlock Congress takes a methodical approach to diagnosing the causes behind the breakdown. Since we know that 85-95% of Americans believe Congress is delivering a poor PRODUCT, it only makes sense to investigate the system’s defects and define the PROBLEM. Informing Americans about the major causes of this problem and advocating a corresponding PLATFORM of solutions are the twin goals of Unlock Congress. Once we correct the flaws in the system, America’s elected leaders will be able to more effectively communicate, negotiate, and develop solutions to meet the nation’s great challenges. https://www.thegoldenmean.us/unlock_congress/

One Million Degrees (formerly The Illinois Education Foundation) is a non-profit scholarship program that empowers low-income community college students to achieve their degrees, and in the process, contribute to a more robust economy. OMD's one of a kind scholarship model provides both academic and financial support to hard working college students, and is supported by a broad spectrum of business, educational and government leaders throughout our state. It is a mission that is rapidly becoming a movement in higher education. www.onemilliondegrees.org

Newsbound, Inc. is an online media and software company that helps organizations to tell their stories more effectively on the web. We research, write and design embeddable "stacks" that make topics and messaging accessible to any audience. As we provide this service, our team is also perfecting this software platform that will enable organizations and publishers to create their own visually dynamic content. Our custom-authoring tool will allow content creators to drive deep engagement on subjects previously too dense or complicated to appeal to the everyday consumer. Additionally, through partnerships with original content producers, Newsbound is accumulating a substantial online library of "Explainers" on topics related to news and current events. www.newsbound.com

Designed and taught courses including: The Congress, Democratization, Problems of Democracy.

Complete The Degree is an initiative founded to recruit and assist adults who are motivated to return to college to finish their degrees. There is no such thing as a “one-size-fits-all” roadmap to college completion. Complete the Degree advisors work with students one-on-one, providing a customized plan and consistent support to help them take on the challenges of managing adult responsibilities while completing college courses. www.completethedegree.org