BLCK VC is thrilled to announce the Black Venture Institute (BVI) Cohort 2 with 55 new Fellows! This new class joins over 50 BVI Fellows from the first cohort to continue expanding the Black Venture Institute Community. The Black Venture Institute was launched in 2020 to empower a new generation of Black leaders across the tech industry with the knowledge and networks to become investors.
As we reflect on the past year, the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery, and the global response against racism, we’re reminded of the importance of creating meaningful change in racial equity. We believe that the Black Venture Institute and our Fellows will continue to be a beacon of progress as we build a more inclusive and equitable venture ecosystem. We are also conscious of the gender inequities that persist in the venture industry and want to ensure an intersectional approach to our work, which is also why we’re proud to share that over 55% of Cohort 2 are women.
Fellows learned from top industry minds, business leaders, and UC Berkeley professors throughout the Black Venture Institute Program. We want to thank the many wonderful mentors and speakers who helped to make this program a success. In addition to our tremendous mentors, We could not have built BVI without BLCK VC’s strategic partners: Salesforce Ventures, Operator Collective, UC Berkeley Executive Education, GV, CapitalG, Sequoia Capital, and Lightspeed Venture Partners.
The BVI Community is excited to welcome the second cohort of 55 BVI Fellows. They represent 18 different states and are leaders within companies across the tech industry. To learn more about our Fellows, check out our Black Venture Institute Spring 2021 Lookbook.
We will host the next Black Venture Institute Program in November 2021, and we will begin accepting applications in Summer 2021. We will be selecting at least 50 new BVI Fellows to participate in this third cohort. To learn more about the program and sign up for updates on the application, please visit BLCK VC.
