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Laura Weidman Powers is a social entrepreneur whose career has spanned the nonprofit, for-profit, and government sectors.

Laura is a partner at venture firm Base10, leading portfolio services and operations for the Advancement Initiative, the firm's $250M growth fund designed to close the endowment gap at America's Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

Laura joined Base10 after working as the Head of Impact at Echoing Green, a global social innovation fund, where she oversaw investments, portfolio support, and impact strategy. Laura is the co-founder and CEO emerita of Code2040, a nationally-recognized, award-winning nonprofit that helped launch the modern movement for diversity in tech.

In 2016, Laura was invited to join the Obama Administration for a tour of duty as senior advisor to US Chief Technology Officer Megan Smith on issues of diversity and inclusion and equitable access to capital. From 2014-2016 Laura sat on the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE) for the US Department of Commerce.

Laura was the American University of Rome¡¯s first Social Entrepreneur in Residence in 2019, and was a 2018 Stanford Social Entrepreneur in Residence, teaching courses on social innovation at both schools. She was a 2016 New America California Fellow, a 2013 Echoing Green Fellow, and a 2013 Goldman Sachs Most Intriguing Entrepreneur.

Laura holds a BA from Harvard and a JD/MBA from Stanford. She once traveled for 303 days with a baby.