Maine Venture Fund names Brien Walton as chair
FILE PHOTO / FRED FIELD
Brien Walton was appointed to chair Maine Venture Fund’s board of directors.
The Maine Venture Fund has named Brien Walton, a nationally recognized social impact investment strategist, to chair the board of directors for the state-sponsored venture capital fund.
Walton, who was appointed to the board by Gov. Janet Mills in 2020, is the CEO of Acadia Capital Management L3C, a certified community development entity that advises government and others on leveraging resources for economic growth in federally designated Opportunity Zones.
He is also the director of the Richard E. Dyke Center for Family Business at Husson University. There, he has led initiatives analyzing the challenges of Maine’s entrepreneurs and developed a collaborative innovation ecosystem between academia and the business community.
“I want to thank Governor Mills for appointing me to the Maine Venture Fund board and for the opportunity to serve the state," Walton said in a news release Tuesday.
"I also want to thank my fellow directors for selecting me to chair the board. As the first African American to serve as the chair of the Maine Venture Fund, I want to encourage entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds to start and grow businesses in Maine or to pursue careers as investment professionals in ways that stimulate regional and national economic growth.”
Walton's appointment comes as the Maine Venture Fund's recently named managing director, Joe Powers, began serving in that position July 1. Powers, formerly a principal at the fund, replaced longtime director John Burns, who is retiring.
Philly innovation
The fund's new chairman, Walton, is a former corporate tax attorney, commercial banker and real estate broker who founded and led the first university-based educational technology venture capital fund in the U.S. While serving as CEO of that fund, at the University of Pennsylvania, he created an award-wining shared space innovation hub in downtown Philadelphia.
In 2020, the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development invited Walton to speak to a national audience on leveraging public and private resources to maximize economic growth and permanent job creation in Opportunity Zones.
Walton holds a doctorate in education and a master's degree in workforce development from the University of Pennsylvania, a law degree from the University of the District of Columbia, and master's degrees from Harvard University and Georgetown University.
“I am delighted Dr. Walton has agreed to chair the Maine Venture Fund,” said Mills. “I appointed Brien to the Board because of his vast experience managing a technology-focused venture capital fund and his reputation for creating innovative business strategies for high potential companies. The depth of his knowledge and experience make him an excellent choice to chair the Board and spearhead our efforts to help businesses grow and stay in Maine.”
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