Karen Gordon-Brown

Karen Gordon-Brown is formerly an at-home mother and homemaker raising 2 sons now thriving young men in Oakland and Berkeley, California. Since 2008, she has served as an adjunct professor of business and real estate for the Peralta Community College District at Merritt College and is currently the Founder and CEO of Cottages Capital Investments Group; her second private equity and venture capital company. Cottages sponsors large and small business ventures who offer unique and alternative investment opportunities. Karen is also a certified integrative health and wellness coach with a focus on personal finance (especially retirement), and healthy aging (https://www.factoryfilmstudio.com/portfolio-item/new-age-of-aging/). Karen says, "Aging is Episodic", "Growing Old is a Biological Function", and reminds us that "Youth is Eternal". Outside of business creation, Karen’s career experience has been multi-faceted including a first responder disaster preparedness leadership role. Yet, all of Karen’s experiences rest on a foundation of business communications; content development; relationship management (CRM/PRM/IRM); and applied lean management business systems including business and performance improvement analysis. Karen holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Journalism and Public Relations as a second-generation graduate from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, her father's alma mater, and a Master of Business Administration from Walden University. Her certifications and licensing include Lean Management, Criterion Referenced Instruction, California Real Estate Salesperson, and California Assisted Living Administrator, and a sponsored National Mortgage Loan Origination candidate. Her favorite hobbies are singing, covering songs on her Roland FP-7 and hacking jewelry.