IRVINE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Sunstone Management today announced that it has granted $75,000 to the California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship. With the funds, the Institute will partner with Sunstone Management to coordinate university-based activities that promote entrepreneurship at California State University (CSU) campuses, help early-stage entrepreneurs access resources that advance their ventures, and increase awareness of such activities among other CSU campus partners and stakeholders.
“Mentorship and aiding university-based entrepreneurs is vital to growing and maintaining the pipeline of founders and innovators in our state,” said John Keisler, CEO of Sunstone Management. “The CSULB Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship is a key resource for students and academics interested in founding their own businesses, and we are pleased to support their expanding efforts.”
“The Institute is excited to receive this grant. The collaborative effort to build awareness and engagement across the CSU community of campuses and programs is a unique opportunity. This initiative will result in growing the entrepreneurial ecosystem on each campus and in the surrounding communities. This program will provide measurable economic benefits for the diverse and underserved communities that the CSU represent,” according to Wade Martin, Professor and Director of CSULB Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
The mission of the CSULB Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship is to provide programming and guidance for innovators and entrepreneurs that leads to success. The Institute is a central hub for innovation and entrepreneurship programming to support long-term economic growth that is inclusive and sustainable for our diverse communities.
Under this new partnership, the CSULB Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship will initially begin coordinating activities that advance entrepreneurship with the following universities:
- Cal State Long Beach
- Cal State Dominguez Hills
- Cal State Northridge
- Cal State Los Angeles
- Cal State Fullerton
- Cal State Pomona
The CSULB Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship plans to add activities with more CSUs in the future.
The grant was delivered through the Sunstone Entrepreneurship Community Fund, a Donor Advised Fund managed by the National Philanthropic Trust.
###
About Sunstone Management: A Financial Times (FT) Americas’ Fastest Growing Company
Sunstone Management is a diversified private capital firm located in Southern California that invests in diverse early-stage technology entrepreneurs who demonstrate the promise to build great companies. We believe in the aspirational power of southern California to attract and inspire the most sophisticated investors and the most ambitious entrepreneurs in the world. We deliver new and exciting opportunities for economic growth through the creation of innovative public-private-partnerships, and our unique experience across government, education, and private sectors.
LinkedIn | Twitter | Facebook | Crunchbase | Pitchbook
About CSULB Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship
The Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship at CSULB is focused on brining innovation to market. We provide programming and mentoring designed to unlock the creative energy of students, faculty, staff, and the local population that engages stakeholders across campus and in the community focused on the common goal of innovation and entrepreneurship. The primary objective of the Institute is to leverage all this energy and entrepreneurial capital into a driving force for economic development for the greater Long Beach community. Creating economic opportunities will support long-term economic growth that is sustainable and improves the lives of all members of our community, the economy, and the greater environment where we live.