David Vaught is an author and filmmaker focused on stories of resilience, responsibility, and redemption. He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1969, where he challenged compulsory chapel both as a cadet and later as a federal court witness in the case that ended it. 

David went on to a career of public service and politics, supporting Governor Dan Walker’s reform campaign in Illinois and serving as Director of the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget under Governor Pat Quinn during the Great Recession. 

His new project, Remaking the American Dream, is a short film and companion book that examines how families and communities navigate setbacks, shifting economies, and the hope that endures.