ANN ARBOR ? The Michigan Venture Capital Association has named Jan Garfinkle as its new vice president and president-elect to take over the day-to-day duties from current MVCA President Mitch Mondry who has focused more of his attention on his out of state real estate development efforts.
Garfinkle will replace Mondry when his term expires in November. Garfinkle is the managing partner and founder of Arboretum Ventures. Arboretum invests in early stage life science companies with valuable exit strategies. Arboretum’s portfolio companies include HandyLab, Asterand, CardioMems and NeoGuide. Garfinkle earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Bioengineering at the University of California, Berkley, and an MBA in marketing at the Wharton School of Finance.
Mondry, president of M Group in Birmingham, is developing 500 luxury high rise condominiums in Las Vegas as well as other investment property in Aspen, Colorado. He has been spending more of his time out of state.
Besides Mondry and Garfinkle, other MVCA board members include Secretary Mike Bernard of Dykema Gossett and Treasurer Jason Burr of Arbor Partners.
The Michigan VCA is comprised of venture capital, private equity and professional services firms working together to promote entrepreneurism and private equity investment. Its goal is to make Michigan one of the best states in the country to build new businesses. It works closely with legislators in Lansing to develop activities that support a growing entrepreneurial environment, and was instrumental in passage of the state’s $150 million legislation to assist early-phase companies.
