Company
We are experienced educators, journalists, and technologists who are seriously committed to making students better critical thinkers, communicators, and citizens by equipping them with the tools to thrive in the 21st century.
We are committed to making teachers’ lives easier by making The Juice a plug-and-play solution. We empower educators to make informed learning decisions with individual and class-wide diagnostic data.
Our content philosophy is simple: Engaging content, engages learners. We monitor, evaluate, debate, and hold ourselves to high standards and to always follow the Golden Rule. To achieve the highest levels of journalistic integrity, we write all of our stories in-house. We value neutrality, and we do not repurpose news articles from third parties.
We want as many students and teachers as possible to benefit from The Juice, no matter their background. That’s why we have a sliding scale for under-funded schools and community groups. We’re on track to provide 30,000 students with access to The Juice for free this year. If you think your school or group qualifies, please contact us.
Our Team
I am a serial entrepreneur and investor with 35 years of experience building, growing, and investing in businesses.
I have launched multiple startups, managed hedge funds and private equity funds, and sat on the boards of publicly traded companies as well as non-profit charities. Most importantly, I am the father of four children.
When not pondering, I love to bike, garden, hike, and make art.
Nathan Leight
Founder & CEO
I am passionate about media, technology, and the news. My career began at The New York Times where I held senior positions in marketing, circulation, advertising, and strategic planning. I left The Times at the beginning of the internet revolution and have since run several digital companies in the advertising and media segments.
I have also managed digital media for a company in the TV industry and assisted an international software company establish a presence in the US. My interest in news goes back to my high school days where I served as our newspaper’s sports editor. Shortly thereafter I discovered the business side of newspapers and eventually landed as the business-side executive at The Harvard Crimson.
Lorren Elkins
COO & CMO
I have over 30 years of experience in technology, software and Internet development. After starting my career building cutting-edge medical diagnostic equipment, I spent a decade at IBM’s T.J. Watson Research Center developing and programming a parallel supercomputer, then worked on interactive and Internet streaming-media technologies and large-scale database applications. After that, I worked at an early-stage Internet company developing streaming video content and have been involved in technology assessment for private equity, venture and public company investment for more than 15 years.
I have been developing web properties for public and private companies as well as for not-for-profits since the 2000’s. I am the holder of multiple patents and am published in peer-reviewed technology journals. I hold degrees from Columbia University’s School of Engineering (BSEE) and NYU Polytechnic (MSCS).
When not working or spending time with my family, I can be found playing violin with the Yonkers Philharmonic Orchestra, working on my golf game or pursuing my passion for photography.
Robert Plotkin
CTO
I make sure everything is legal and compliant and that the wheels keep turning. I’ve been advising companies and their managers at various stages of corporate development for a decade as both counsel and director. I earned my JD from The University of Texas School of Law.
I served as a judicial intern for the Honorable Diana Saldaña of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. I received my BA in political science from the University of California, Santa Barbara. I am a member of the State Bar of California.
Stephen Schifrin
General Counsel
I keep an eye on the finances so we can focus on keeping an eye on the news.
I earned a BA in accounting from Zicklin School of Business, Baruch College. I am a certified public accountant and CGMA certified.
As a seasoned accounting professional with diverse experience in public, corporate, and private equity fund accounting, I provide support for the day-to-day operations, tax reporting as well as financial budgeting and forecasting for the company.
Irina Carpov
CFO
After a career spent teaching students to become more sophisticated consumers of information in the classroom, I now serve as The Juice’s lead education specialist. I ensure our products are aligned with the educational promises we’ve made to the educational community.
Like many career educators, in addition to my 14 years as a classroom teacher at Cambridge Rindge and Latin, I served in many roles, including nine summers as the Principal of the Cambridge-Harvard Summer Academy. As a principal, teacher, mentor, advisor, and coach, I taught a wide range of subjects to a wide range of learners.
I earned my BA in History from Boston College and my Masters in teaching from Tufts University.
Brendan Kells
VP, Education
With over two decades of experience as an Education Marketer, Audrey is passionate about doing work that matters and helping teachers and students achieve their full potential in and outside the classroom. As the director of marketing for The Juice, Audrey is excited to bring her experience and leadership skills to The Juice Learning team. She looks forward to working alongside people who are passionate about bridging the gap between education and technology for generations to come.
When she is not working alongside her team at The Juice, Audrey enjoys skiing the black diamond slopes of Northern Nevada in the winter, enjoying a good book, and swimming in California's waters. The community has always been a big driver for Audrey. She enjoys supporting woman-driven organizations such as the Junior League of Reno and Dress for Success in her free time. Audrey completed her B.S. in Integrated Studies from CSU, Monterey Bay, concentrating on environmental science, ecological economics, and urban design.
Audrey Ciccone
Director, Marketing
I’ve worked in just about every capacity in the news business, not only in English, but also in Spanish. I’ve won national and local awards (including 12 Emmys), for anchoring, reporting, interviewing, and commentary. I worked in national news as “Good Morning America’s” News Anchor and as a correspondent for “World News Tonight with Peter Jennings.” More recently, I anchored an international news show on Al Jazeera America. I have also anchored local news in Chicago, Miami, New York and Los Angeles.
On the side, I often write columns about Latin American affairs and U.S. foreign policy. I appear frequently on national and international TV networks as a commentator on those topics and on the media. I also teach at the University of Miami’s School of Communication. I am a Harvard-educated lawyer and have a Venezuela law degree as well.
I am a news obsessive, but am saddened by the divisions in American politics and the identity crisis in U.S. media. I am excited about how The Juice can help unbiasedly inform and prepare future generations.
Antonio Mora
Editor in Chief Emeritus
I find bugs in our software, prior to release, so the user can love our product and have a great experience from the start. I earned a BA in Information Science and an MBA in Investment Finance from Fordham University.
I have 25+ years of experience across diverse industries, analyzing software, breaking it, verifying the fix and giving the final thumbs up to release.
When I’m not working, I have a passion for storm chasing and photography.
Jennifer Dooley
Quality Assurance Analyst
I’m a seasoned, award-winning journalist. I’ve written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Boston Globe, the Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun, Newsweek, The Center for Public Integrity, HealthDay News, BusinessWeek.com, CBSNews.com, CNBC.com, United Press International, and others.
In 11 years at The Baltimore Sun, I started in the county bureaus, advanced to key beats on the city and business desks and editing jobs. I have taught news, magazine, and travel writing at the University of Maryland, College Park, and Loyola University — Maryland.
I’m a big believer in the power of technology to transform the way news is delivered and to vastly expand the reach of coverage. But I’m old school in insisting that at a time when so much agenda-driven noise competes for our attention, we must get back to delivering well-written, unbiased news that is critical for an informed citizenry.
Gary Gately
Senior Journalist
I help the education and journalistic teams produce The Juice’s daily content, and also help create content for marketing and biz dev.
I earned my BA in English from the University of Pennsylvania where I graduated with English Honors and Magna Cum Laude. At Penn, I was a coxswain on the Women’s Varsity Rowing Team and was the Editor in Chief of the Wharton International Business Review.
After spending my Senior year of undergrad researching children’s books for my thesis, I decided to continue my studies at the University of Cambridge. There, I earned my Master of Philosophy in Critical Approaches to Children’s Literature at the Faculty of Education. I am a alumna of Darwin College and was a coxswain on the College’s rowing team.
When I’m not working, you can find me curled up with a book or trying a new ice cream flavor.
Lilli Leight
Content Manager
My mission is to help children develop a love for lifelong learning. Over the past decade, I’ve had the opportunity to foster this mindset as a high school English teacher, an instructional coach, an administrator, and now as the Senior Educator for The Juice. Teaching children to be independent thinkers, engage in their learning process, and enjoy reading is always my top priority, which is why the students in my classroom consistently exceeded their learning targets on summative assessments. I am a proud recipient of the Colorado Jared Polis Teacher Recognition Awards, and will continue to advocate for equitable education whether I am in the classroom, leading educators through professional development, or creating standards-aligned questions in order to encourage students to think critically. The world of education is evolving, and I am thrilled to be a part of this team of experts that is on the forefront of these exciting changes while keeping student achievement and engagement at the heart.
Chloe Lucas
Senior Educator
I am an award-winning journalist based in Chicago. I was a newspaper reporter for nearly two decades, the second being spent at the Chicago Tribune. My writing also has appeared in the Washington Post, New Yorker, Vox media and other outlets. I’ve taught journalism at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.
I am best known as the author of the first substantive biography of Barack Obama (OBAMA: From Promise to Power, HarperCollins). The book, a Washington Post bestseller, drew praise from both Obama’s critics and supporters. The National Review called the book “the best source of background material” on Obama and a New Yorker magazine writer deemed my work “an unparalleled chronicle of the making of an American president.”
In today’s chaotic journalism environment, it can be hard to ascertain the bias of various news sources and sort through the noise, despite the excellent work that is being produced. I am proud to work for a news and education entity that strives to provide unbiased news to a growing band of consumers.
David Mendell
Senior Journalist
My experience as an award-winning newspaper reporter and freelance writer goes back three decades. For most of my career, I was a staff writer at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where I covered politics and government, criminal justice, and led newspaper investigations that relied on computer-assisted reporting. Some of my specific assignments included covering the Governor’s office, the Georgia General Assembly, and many political campaigns including candidates running for president, governor, and congress. I also covered many high-profile trials.
I have also written for the New York Times, CNN, and AOL News, among others.
Two of the most important lessons I learned as a young journalist were: never make assumptions and always, always, strive to understand fully the motivations and diverging points of view of everyone you cover. Simply put, that means trying very hard to see things the way others see them and be willing to tell their side of the story as completely as possible. The best among us are those who strive to be accurate and fair, always.
Ben Smith
Senior Journalist
Sydney Teske
Social Media Consultant
I began working in news at an early age having been an NBC6 Junior Broadcaster in South Florida throughout high school. After earning a graduate degree in Media and Communications from Pace University in NY, I spent three years working for CNN’s morning show New Day. I’ve also worked as a producer for NewsmaxTV and as a producer of news, promotional, and educational content for the City of Coral Gables’ government access channel, CGTV.
Outside of my work in broadcast news I have spent a lot of time on camera and on stage as a television show host, actor and emcee. When I am not working I am thoroughly enjoying the South Florida lifestyle of boating, fishing, scuba diving, golfing and beach days.
I truly believe in objective journalism. It troubles me to see news coverage straying from that fundamental mandate. I feel very strongly that providing news consumers with facts and stories free of bias will allow them to decide for themselves what is real and what matters. I personally strive to remain fair and objective in all my media pursuits and am excited to apply that same objectivity to my work with The Juice.
