Emerson Collective is an organization focused on education, immigration reform, the environment, media and journalism, and health. Founded by billionaire philanthropist Laurene Powell Jobs,[2] the collective, which operates under a limited liability company (LLC) model, uses philanthropy, impact investing, advocacy, and community engagement as tools to broadly spur change in the United States and abroad.[2] The organization is considered to be one of the leading groups engaged in philanthrocapitalism.[8]
In 1997, Powell Jobs had co-founded, together with Carlos Watson, the nonprofit organization College Track, a college completion program to combat the achievement gap among students of color.[10][11] When Emerson Collective was established in 2004, grants and investments largely focused on the education sector. When Powell Jobs began learning more about the challenges plaguing immigrant students, particularly those whose undocumented status made it difficult to attend college, Emerson Collective broadened its portfolio to include immigration reform and advocacy.[2]
Powell Jobs and Emerson Collective were strong advocates of the creation of President Barack Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and have continued to push for permanent legislation to provide "Dreamers" with a path to citizenship.[12] In October 2016, she wrote the article "Immigrants Fuel Innovation. Let's Not Waste Their Potential" for WIRED.[13]
In 2015, Emerson Collective's Managing Director of Education Russlynn H. Ali launched the affiliate XQ Institute, a nonprofit dedicated to rethinking American public high school.[14]
In 2015, Emerson Collective became the lead investor in education technology company Amplify.[15]
In 2016, former U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan joined Emerson Collective to launch Chicago CRED, a nonprofit committed to curbing gun violence in Chicago through counseling, training, and matching young men with jobs.[17]
In 2019, Emerson Collective led a round of funding for Boom Supersonic, an aerospace company that aims to make supersonic commercial flight a realization again, and its proposed 55-passenger business-class transport.[19]
Media investments and donations
Invested in Ozy,[20] and was one of its first backers.[21]
On September 1, 2016, invested in series A funding for Axios Media, a news website focusing on business, technology, politics and media trends.[22]
On July 28, 2017, became the majority owner of The Atlantic, purchasing the majority stake from Atlantic Media's David G. Bradley.[23] The outlets owned by Emerson Collective include The Atlantic magazine and its digital properties along with its standout events line, AtlanticLIVE, and its consulting division, Atlantic 57. The Washington Post reports Emerson Collective plans to move to full ownership of The Atlantic in "three to five years" after their 2017[update] investment.[24]
In 2021, invested, along with others, a total of $12 million in WaitWhat. WaitWhat is a podcast and media company founded and led by former TED executives June Cohen and Deron Triff.[28]
^ abcd"Company Overview of Emerson Collective LLC". Bloomberg. November 25, 2017. Archived from the original on November 26, 2017. Retrieved November 26, 2017. Emerson Collective LLC invests and advocates for immigration reform, environment, school improvement, and social justice initiatives through investments in entrepreneurs and nonprofits. It also supports public policy advocates. Emerson Collective LLC was founded in 2004 and is based in Palo Alto, California.
^Dylan Byers (October 15, 2018). "Saudi ties entangle Laurene Powell Jobs' Emerson Collective". NBC News. Retrieved October 16, 2018. Klein, a Wall Street rainmaker and former Citigroup executive, is a managing partner at Emerson and helps manage the company's business
^THEODORE SCHLEIFER (September 29, 2021). "Laurene Powell Jobs' Bizarre Week in the Headlines". Puck. Retrieved October 5, 2021. Powell Jobs has been close with Ozy C.E.O. Carlos Watson for decades—the two co-founded College Track, her first philanthropic initiative, back in East Palo Alto in 1997
^Jody Serrano (October 2, 2021). "Ozy Media's Lies Made It Go Up in Flames [Updated]". Gizmodo. Retrieved October 5, 2021. Emerson Collective, Laurene Powell Jobs' company dedicated to investing and advocacy, said that while it had been one of Ozy's first backers
