Julie Cranston, former director of the SBDC at UCI’s Beall Applied Innovation (BAI), is hired by social enterprise visionary RevHubOC to direct its new social innovation fund, RevFund I.
Irvine, CA, June 2022 | Announcing the hire of a fundraising director from the University of California in Irvine, RevHubOC is pushing forward on its mission to continue shaping the social enterprise ecosystem in Orange County.
Appointed to overseeing RevHubOC’s RevFund I, Orange County’s first fund designed specifically for social innovation throughout the county, Julie Cranston formerly served as the SBDC director at UCI’s BAI and was pivotal in building the new tech center from the ground up. She also offers expertise as the executive director for COVE Fund II, a venture capital fund of fourteen million dollars with an average deal flow of 250 start-up organizations per year.
Cranston’s fundraising prowess will be essential to RevHubOC’s endeavors. President and CEO Stephan Erkelens is focused on shaping the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Orange County first, before venturing into the rest of the state, the nation, and eventually the world at large.
“OC is an emerging sector and economic driver, spawning new jobs where potential millions are being employed to benefit society, the environment, and other valuable causes,” says Erkelens. “Local foundations, churches, corporations, universities, and the OC public sector all encourage innovation here.”
A long-time innovator of the coffee industry, Erkelens co-founded RevHubOC with the support of other seasoned professionals who have a proven track record in charitable giving, business, finance, and social enterprise. Compelled by a unified vision, the group strives to create a better mechanism to fund and sustain social enterprises both at home and around the world. Fueled by the expertise and know-how of leaders like Cranston, RevHubOC has become a collaborative ecosystem of like-minded individuals where both founders and funders are able to accelerate the impact of nascent social enterprises.
RevHubOC is committed to fostering economic growth and empowerment within the OC community and beyond, creating opportunities and drive systemic change through entrepreneurship.
About RevHubOC |
RevHubOC is coalescing Orange County’s social enterprise ecosystem for greater innovation and impact. Founded in 2019, RevHubOC is a community of investors, entrepreneurs, mentors, and partners that assists in incubating, mentoring, and funding social enterprises to solve global challenges. This ecosystem is designed to illuminate pathways and eliminate barriers to entrepreneurship for under-represented and under-resourced communities, bringing together comprehensive resources to provide people what they need to explore and develop new business ideas.
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