Our Mission

About the Team

Executive Director, Judy Simpson

A forty year Nevada resident, Judy graduated from Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio and the University of Nevada, Reno, with Masters degrees in both history and counseling. She was a Foreign Language and Social Studies teacher and Social Studies Coordinator in Washoe County, and was also Program Manager of Junior Achievement for several years. In 1987 Judy opened Partners in Education, a joint effort of the school district and the Greater Reno/Sparks Chamber of Commerce, designed to bring community resources into schools. Judy has since worked as a trainer for the Center for Civic Education, and the Nevada coordinator for ‘We the People…The Citizen and the Constitution’, and ‘Project Citizen’. In August 2005, she became Project Director for the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools.

In addition to her educational work Judy managed the Reno Chamber Orchestra for six years, and was the first woman chairperson of the Nevada Region of the National Conference of Community and Justice. She served on the Leadership Reno/Sparks Board of Directors and is currently a member of the Governor’s advisory committee on civic participation.

The title 'Humanitarian of the Year' was bestowed on Judy by the National Conference of Community and Justice, and in 1996, she received the Distinguished Alumni Award from Leadership Reno and the Mark Twain Award for Distinguished Community Service from the Public Relations Society of America. In 1998 she was honored by the Nevada Business Journal as one of the State's top 50 business leaders. Judy also received the Jean Ford Democracy Award 2007 which honors deserving citizens who have benefited their communities, state and nation through their participation and leadership in furthering the democratic process.

Program Manager, Debbie Berger

Debbie has recently retired after thirty years as a civic educator teaching Social Studies in Las Vegas. She graduated from California State University, Fresno and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, with a BA in History and a Masters Degree in Secondary Education, Curriculum and Instruction.

Debbie currently serves as the NV1 Congressional District co-coordinator for the We the People…the Citizen and the Constitution program and is a past recipient of the Clark County Bar Association Liberty Bell Award which recognizes outstanding time and energy performed by a non-lawyer in their commitment to educating young people about civic duty and the responsibilities of citizenship. Debbie works to ensure that Project REAL’s curriculum and interactive activities are available to thousands of students and teachers each year.

JB has over 40 years business experience in diverse industries such as Aerospace, Insurance, Education, Municipal Government, Information Technology and Entertainment. She previously owned a website design & internet hosting company, as well as an Entertainment Booking Agency and Pro Audio company.

JB is listed in Who's Who Registry of Global Business Leaders (1992) and was awarded "Ambassador of Courtesy by the Las Vegas Visitors and Convention Authority.

The Founders

Sam Lionel

Samuel Lionel Esq. is a founder of the law firm, Lionel, Sawyer & Collins. He serves as President of the firm, an Executive Committee member, and the Chairman of the Litigation Department. Lionel graduated from St. John's University (LL.B, 1940) and California Western School of Law (LL.D., 1985) and is one of the most respected and well-known trial attorneys in Nevada. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and is listed in 'Best Lawyers in America' for business litigation and for corporate law. Mr. Lionel is also a retired lieutenant colonel JAGC.

Mr. Lionel's professional and civic involvement includes: Member (1960-1971) and Chairman (1972-1989) Board of Bar Examiners of Nevada, Member, Ninth Circuit Senior Advisory Board, 1990-1996, Fellow, American College of Trial Lawyers, Member, State Bar of Nevada, Member, Clark County Bar Association, Member, American Bar Association.

Mr. Lionel's bar/court admissions include: New York State Bar, State Bar of Nevada, U.S. Supreme Court, Nevada, and U.S. District Court, District of Nevada, U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.

Irwin Molasky

For more than 50 years, Irwin Molasky has played a significant role in the phenomenal growth of the Las Vegas valley. As Chairman of The Molasky Group of Companies, he has been an innovator in the creation of much of the Las Vegas skyline.

Molasky was responsible for the city's first private hospital, the 730-bed Sunrise Hospital Surgical Center & Medical Center; Paradise Palms, the area's first master-planned community; and the first high-rise office building in downtown Las Vegas, the 17-story Bank of America Plaza, which houses Project REAL. Molasky also designed and developed the Nevada's first and largest enclosed shopping mall, the 1,350,000-square-foot Boulevard Mall, and the first high-rise luxury condominium project, Park Towers at Hughes Center. Town and Country named Park Towers "one of the five best buildings in the United States."

A true community leader and entrepreneur, Molasky has made a number of influential contributions to Nevada. These include the Nathan Adelson Hospice that serves the terminally ill and their families, and donating 45 acres of prime land at Flamingo Road and Maryland Parkway to UNLV. He also serves on the board of the National Judicial College in Reno.