Scholar-in-Residence

Mr. Charlie Harary, Esq. is the Senior Director of Capital Markets at RXR Realty, a multi-billion dollar Real Estate Company based in New York. He is a prolific speaker and radio host, known internationally for his insights on personal growth, entrepreneurship and social change. He also serves as a Clinical Professor of Management and Entrepreneurship at the Syms School of Business at Yeshiva University.

Rabbi Spiro is a Senior Lecturer and Researcher for Aish HaTorah, Jerusalem. In addition, he is a licensed tour guide from the Israel Ministry of Tourism.

Rabbi Spiro graduated from Vassar College with a BA in Russian Language and Literature and did graduate studies at the Pushkin Institute in Moscow. He has an MA in History from The Vermont College of Norwich University and Rabbinic Ordination from Yeshiva Aish HaTorah in Jerusalem.

He has appeared on numerous radio and television programs such as B.B.C. Radio and TV., The National Geographic Channel, The Discovery Channel, The History Channel, Channel 4 England and Arutz Sheva-Israel National Radio. He is the author of WorldPerfect – The Jewish Impact on Civilization published by HCI books, Crash Course in Jewish History published by Targum Press and Destiny – Why a tiny nation plays such a huge role in history published by Geffen Publishing House. 

Born and raised in the U.S. Rabbi Spiro has lived in Israel since 1982. He served in a combat infantry unit in the IDF. A father of five children, he currently lives in Jerusalem .

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Rabbi Herbert J. Cohen, ordained at Yeshiva University, served as a synagogue rabbi and high school principal for over three decades. He received a PhD in English Literature from Georgia State University, an MA in English from Hunter College of the City University of New York, an MS in Jewish Education from Yeshiva University, and a BA in History and English from Yeshiva University. He is the author of several books including Kosher Movies: A Film Critic Discovers Life Lessons at the Cinema, The One of Us: A Life in Jewish Education, Texas Torah, Kosher Parenting and Walking in Two Worlds: Visioning Torah Concepts in Secular Worlds.  His column, “Kosher Movies,” has appeared in newspapers in Atlanta, Toronto, and Denver. Rabbi Cohen also blogs regularly in The Times of Israel and the Religion Section of The Huffington Post on the intersection of film and faith.

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 Rabbi Steven Weil is the Senior Managing Director of the Orthodox  Union.Rabbi Steven Weil, the son of German “Viehhaendler”, grew      up on a cattle farm in Upstate New York. His love for learning began  early, and as a teenager prevailed upon his parents to send him          away to Yeshiva. He continued his education at Kerem B’Yavneh and  Yeshiva University, concurrently completing his ordination at the        Rabbeinu Yitzchak Elchanan Theological Seminary and a Master’s in  Business Administration from NYU’s Stern School of Business. Rabbi  Weil began his career teaching, and then began pulpit work;first at    the Young Israel of Oak Park, Michigan and then at Beth Jacob            Congregation in Beverly Hills, California. In both positions, Rabbi        Weil significantly expanded the synagogue’s membership and            programming and was involved in serving the needs of the greater    community as well. In 2009 he became the chief executive officer of  the Orthodox Union. Rabbi Weil is a popular teacher and lecturer,      having delivered invocations for former President Bush, Governor      Schwarzenegger as well as Speaker John Boehner and the House of    Representatives among others. He has served internationally as          scholar-in-residence on land and on sea, and is a passionate                advocate for Israel and for Jewish education. Rabbi Weil resides in       New Jersey with his wife and seven children.      

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Ambassador Danny Ayalon’s distinguished career as diplomat and politician includes service as Israel’s Ambassador to the United States, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel, a member of Knesset, Foreign Policy Advisor to Prime Ministers Benjamin Netanyahu and Ehud Barak, and as Chief Foreign Policy Advisor to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. He has been a frequent contributor to the Jerusalem Post and the Wall Street Journal, and was selected by the Foreign Policy Magazine in 2011 as the Most Influential Diplomat in Social Media.

Ambassador Ayalon is currently President of Hod Ayalon Ltd., a private consulting firm for governments and international corporations, and is a visiting professor at Yeshiva University. He has been a strong proponent of a permanent solution for Palestinian refugees, as well as an advocate for redress of the nearly one million Israeli refugees expelled from Muslim countries following the establishment of Israel in 1948.

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  Mr. Brafman is the principal of Brafman & Associates, P.C.       in Manhattan, which specializes in criminal law with an             emphasis on white-collar criminal defense. He is a fellow         of the American College of Trial Lawyers and in 1997 was        selected by New York magazine as the "Best Criminal              Defense Lawyer in New York." He was also the recipient of      the Outstanding Private Criminal Defense Practitioner              Award for 2005 from the New York State Bar Association.        Mr. Brafman is a frequent lecturer and panelist on criminal    defense issues. He lives on Long Island, New York, with his      wife; they have two children and several grandchildren and    are active in a wide range of charitable organizations.

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