Despite some progress, institutional barriers for underrepresented funders and founders persist. We created Recast Accelerate to address this head-on.
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Women make up 45% of the VC workforce, but only represent 15% of partners. It takes a woman two to three times longer to raise a venture fund versus her white male counterparts on average, and in 2021 women-founded companies only received 2% of VC funding.
Recast Accelerate was designed to accelerate the success of women-led, emerging U.S. venture capital funds.
Applications are now closed for the 2024 cohort. Please sign up for our newsletter to be notified when applications open for the 2025 cohort!
30 funds will be accepted to the program each year.
Applications will be reviewed by a selection committee composed of individuals who have experience investing in emerging venture funds. Applications will be randomly assigned to selection committee teams, and those teams will make recommendations. Final selections will be made by Recast.
Recast Accelerate is designed to increase the number of female venture capitalists, with the hypothesis that those investors will invest in more diverse founders. Recipients need to show that they are committed to the industry, have networks that are ripe for investment and have a background that is of importance to the sector/companies they will be backing.
The funding is intended to be used to pay for back-office support, including but not limited to legal expenses, fund administration, audit or tax assistance, the technology stack, etc. Funds will be paid directly to the service provider(s) and we are able to pre-pay for services where relevant. We are unable to cover previously paid expenses.
Yes. Each recipient will have the opportunity to participate in the Recast Enablement Program, a virtual educational program for emerging managers in venture, receive executive coaching, and benefit from the Recast network: emerging managers and other investors and allocators that are committed to supporting this space. The Enablement Program also includes pitch practice, a LP Day and hearing from both GPs and LPs who have experience in this industry. The recipients are also able to network with each other – and with the other 65 emerging managers that have gone through the educational program as of Q4 2022 – through virtual events, in-person events and using Slack channels.
As the funding goes directly to the service providers, there is not a tax consequence for the recipients. The funding is a gift with the only requirement that you participate in a research study that tracks the demographics of your founders.
Yes! If you meet the eligibility criteria for Accelerate, you are encouraged to apply.
The Enablement Program is a tuition-free, virtual educational program for U.S.-based emerging managers in venture. Learn more on the Enablement webpage here. There are no fund iteration or fund target size/AUM limitations on the participants of the Enablement Program – whomever feels like they could benefit from our content is welcome to apply. Accelerate is meant to really focus on smaller funds and earlier fund iterations where the monetary support, in addition to the educational components, can be transformative for a fund’s staying power in the industry.
Feel free to apply to both programs, but if you do get selected to the Accelerate Program, you will automatically have the opportunity to participate in the Enablement Program.
Email us at Accelerate@recastcapital.com. We will also be holding information sessions – stay tuned for details.
Accelerate is not stopping here. We plan to bring in other funding partners to support more female or other underrepresented emerging managers. If you or you organization is interested in supporting Accelerate’s future, please contact us.
Institutionally-trained investment professionals with decades of experience supporting and investing in emerging managers in venture.
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Courtney is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Recast Capital. Prior to co-founding Recast, Courtney was a Managing Director of Weathergage Capital, a boutique fund of funds that provided its clients with access to premier venture capital, growth equity and micro-VC partnerships. Venture fund commitments included both brand name funds and emerging managers. In addition to fund investment responsibilities, Courtney led the direct co- investing program at Weathergage. During her 10 year tenure at Weathergage, Courtney made commitments to 100 funds and seven direct co-investments.
Prior to Weathergage, Courtney was a General Partner with Weston Presidio, a leading diversified private equity firm based in San Francisco. After 7 years at Weston Presidio, she left in 2004 and founded Silver Partners, a private equity advisory firm where she evaluated secondary and co- investment opportunities and advised consumer growth businesses. Courtney was also a Director at Sterling Stamos, where she managed investments in buyout funds, venture capital funds and hedge funds.
Courtney has an M.B.A., with honors, from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management and a B.A. in Economics from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. She is a member of the Kauffman Fellows Class 3. Courtney is a member of the Alzheimer’s Association Northern California and Nevada Board of Directors and the Chair of the Episcopal Impact Fund Investment Committee.
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Sara is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Recast Capital. Prior to co-founding Recast, Sara served as a Venture Partner at Greenspring Associates, a venture capital platform with over $12B in assets under management. Sara managed Greenspring’s early-stage venture fund evaluation committee, supported the firm’s Micro venture fund evaluation committee and led the firm’s impact investing initiative. She was also responsible for sourcing, due diligence efforts and/or managing a number of Greenspring’s direct and secondary investments.
Applications are now closed for the 2024 cohort. Please sign up for our newsletter to be notified when applications open for the 2025 cohort!
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