Erik Brown

Erik Brown serves as the Senior Director of Private Equity at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management since May 2024. Brown is also a Principal at Red Cedar Capital, focusing on venture capital investments in pre-seed to Series A companies. As an Active Limited Partner with Decasonic and an Investor in both Goldfinch and Wander, Erik is engaged in venture and digital asset initiatives. Additionally, Brown contributes to the Michigan Rise Pre-Seed Fund III as a member of its Advisory Committee, supporting innovative tech startups. A Board Member at the Financial Markets Institute at Michigan State University Broad College of Business since 2009, Erik previously held the role of Advisory Board Member at the Michigan State University Foundation until December 2023 and was a Principal at Aspire Capital Partners, LLC, from January 2010 to December 2023, focusing on investments in life sciences and technology. Erik also provided mentorship in Web3 as a Web3 Mentor for Launchpool Web3 Techstars from January 2022 to January 2023. Brown holds a BA in Finance from Michigan State University and an MBA from Northwestern University - Kellogg School of Management.