YOUR PARTNERS IN CREATING IMPACT AND SAVING DEMOCRACY.
OUR TEAM
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Betsy HooverBetsy has spent the past 5 years running Higher Ground Labs. She founded the firm in 2017 and has built the political tech ecosystem through their work. Prior to HGL, she worked throughout the political space including as a founding partner at 270 Strategies and as the National Digital Organizing Director on the Obama Campaign. Her political work sat at the intersection of technology and politics. She has been recognized by Business Insider as “at the forefront of political innovation”and was featured on Forbes magazine’s “30 Under 30: Law & Policy” list.Founder and Managing Partner
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Sarah EberhardPrior to joining HGL in 2019, Sarah was the COO and General Counsel at 270 Strategies and the the GC of After School Matters, a large not-for-profit in Chicago. Sarah spent the first 10 years of her legal career at Jones Day, with a focus on fund formation and securities law. Sarah earned her BA from Colgate and her JD from Northwestern School of Law.COO & General Counsel
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Gerard NiemiraGerard has spent 15 years in the social good and political tech space working to scale electoral and social impact organizations by serving as VP of Product and Engineering at Kiva, as Senior Director of Product at Hillary for America, and as a political tech founder and political nonprofit senior exec. Most recently he served as Chief Product Officer at PDI.Managing Director, Fund IV
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Hillary LehrHillary Lehr has served as the VP of Client Success at Hustle, managed partnerships at Brigade and Causes.com, and spent five years innovating digital resources to scale nonprofit organizing campaigns. She earned BA and BS degrees from UC Berkeley where she serves as Board Vice President of the college alumni association.Principal, Partnerships
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Vin MoradaPrior to joining HGL, Vin worked in investing and banking roles at Wells Fargo and Merrill Lynch respectively. He also worked at Microsoft as a product manager early in his career and had a brief experience as the co-founder of a failed startup. He has a degree in electrical engineering from the University of British Columbia and an MBA from NYU.Vice President, Investments
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Katie MoroskiWith a background ranging from campus ministry to sales, Katie has found her niche in the world of executive assistance. She has EA experience working for a large regional healthcare system and a small digital product agency. Katie is a proud resident of the City of Cincinnati and earned a BA in Theology from Xavier University.Executive Assistant
OUR BOARD OF ADVISORS
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Beth BaffordVP of Syndications & Strategy, Calvert Impact Capital
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Jeremy BirdChief Policy Officer, Lyft
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Catherine BracyCo-Founder & CEO, TechEquity Collaborative
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Ben BrandzelFounder, The OPEN Network
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Gary BrownPresident, Political Data Inc.
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Ron ConwayFounder, SV Angel
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Charlton CunninghamCharlton Cunningham is a community professional, with experiences in program management, ecosystem building, and curriculum development. Previously, he served as the Head of Programs at HBCUvc and as Executive Director at Startup Atlanta.Program Manager - Tulsa, Lightship Foundation
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Addisu DemissiePrincipal & Co-Founder, 50+1 Strategies and Campaign Manager, Cory 2020
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Jon FavreauFounder, Crooked Media
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Anthony FoxxFormer U.S. Secretary of Transportation
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Richard FrankelFounder, Rocket Fuel and Co-CEO, Chatwin
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Kate GageExecutive Director, Cooperative Impact Lab
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Kathleen GasperineFirst Vice President Social Impact Banking, Amalgamated Bank
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Julius GenachowskiFormer FCC Chairman and Managing Director at Carlyle
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Josh HendlerVP, Schmidt Futures
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Matt HodgesExecutive Director, Zinc Collective
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Ilyse HoguePresident, Purpose
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Allen KramerCo-Founder, Mobilize
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Raffi KrikorianManaging Director, Emerson Collective
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Shrina KuraniManaging Partner, SNØCAP
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Marlon MarshallCEO, City Fund
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Caitlin MitchellSenior VP Strategic Initiatives, NGP VAN
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Tamer MokhtarCo-Founder & Executive Director, All Americans Vote
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Tamim MouradSerial Tech Entrepreneur
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Tatenda MusapatikeFounder & CEO, Voter Formation Project
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Emily NormanCEO, DDx
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Jose NunezNational Organizing Director, DNC
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Michael O'NeilDirector of Public Policy & Community Engagement, Vivid Seats
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Derek ParhamFormer Deputy CTO, Hillary for America
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Michael PodhorzerPolitical Director, AFL-CIO
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Laura QuinnCo-founder & President, Catalist
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Mollie RuskinPartner, Trestle Collaborative
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Aia SarychevaVenture Capitalist, Bessemer Venture Partners
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Mike SchneiderPartner, Bully Pulpit Interactive
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Sonal ShahCEO, Texas Tribune
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Ian SimmonsCo-Founder & Principal, Blue Haven Initiative
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Liesel Pritzker SimmonsCo-Founder & Principal, Blue Haven Initiative
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Stephanie ValenciaCo-founder, EquisLabs
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Tommy VietorFounder, Crooked Media
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Jonae WartelPartner, Arc Initiatives
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Ross WeinerCIO & General Counsel, Code Advisors
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Mike YangInvestment Advisor