Christopher R. Upperman, is Board Member and formerly the first CEO of Envolve Entrepreneurship—a multinational 501(c)(3) organization founded by the Libra Group—with offices in the USA and Athens, Greece, that is committed to cultivating entrepreneurial ecosystems, by ensuring financial assistance and business support services are more readily available for diverse and underserved entrepreneurs. Envolve facilitates an annual funding competition that grants diverse founders startup and working capital and provides other business support; 57 winners in the US and Greece have been declared, with 30 from the USA. Christopher is passionate about community building and believes entrepreneurship can be a vital pathway toward economic self-sufficiency.
Prior to becoming CEO, Christopher served in the Obama Administration at the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and in the Executive Office of the President at the White House. During his time at SBA, he was Assistant Administrator of the Office of Public Engagement reporting directly to the SBA Administrator and Associate Administrator for Communications & Public Liaison. In his role as the head of the Office of Public Engagement, Mr. Upperman managed external stakeholder relationships and outreach and articulated the priorities, internal goals, and policy outcomes shaped to help America’s small businesses. At the White House, Christopher served as Analyst and Director of Presidential Student Correspondence within the Office of Presidential Correspondence. In advance of his time at the White House he served in the United States House of Representatives as an Aide for the District of Columbia’s Delegate to Congress, Eleanor Holmes Norton. Mr. Upperman focused on local district issues in the district office, which included oversight and coordination of her Commission on Black Men & Boys—a commission that addressed social issues that disproportionately and negatively impact Black males in the District of Columbia, particularly issues with a policy implication.
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