Tracy D. Gray is a recognized leader in the financial sector's movement towards equity and justice. Her focus is at the intersection of private capital and economic development, with a passion for solutions that move capital to women and Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), particularly Black, Indigenous, and women of color (BIWOC). She is the Founder and Managing Partner of The 22 Fund (The 22), an impact, early-growth firm that takes a holistic approach to investing. The 22's mission is to increase the export capacity of tech-based manufacturing companies, intentionally targeting women- and BIPOC-owned businesses to create clean, quality jobs in low- and moderate-income communities.
Ms. Gray serves as a Board of Director of Applife Digital Solutions, Inc (ADLS), a publicly traded, fully reporting start-up incubator and portfolio manager, and of the California State University, Dominguez Hills Philanthropic Foundation endowment, where she serves as Treasurer/Secretary on the Investment Committee. She is also a member of PGIM Real Estate's Impact Advisory Council.
Ms. Gray is part of Melinda Gates' Pivotal Venture's Women of Color Advisory Council and numerous global-steering committees focused on finance and multiple issues, including technology, climate, gender, race, and manufacturing. She is the first Social Impact Fellow at the UC Berkeley Haas Business School's Center for Equity, Gender, and Leadership. Ms. Gray was an Executive-in-Residence at the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI) and chaired LACI's Diversity in Entrepreneurship Advisory Council.
In 2015, Ms. Gray delivered a TEDx Talk titled "Why It's Time for Women to Be Sexist with Investment Capital." The response to her TEDx Talk led her to found the nonprofit We Are Enough (WAE), which aims to educate ALL women on how and why to invest in women-owned, for-profit businesses or with a "gender lens." WAE recently released the study Creating LAIA: The Feasibility of a Women-Focused Incubator and Accelerator in Los Angeles and was chosen by Variety magazine as one of the global 50 most "impactful" nonprofits.
Ms. Gray was named one of the 50 Women of Influence in business in Los Angeles and is featured in the recently released book "200 Hundred Women: Who Will Change the Way You See the World" and the Robb Report article "Tracy Gray Invests in Women." In 2019, Ms. Gray received the Bad Ass Woman in Green award from the California League of Conservation Voters and the Women of Courage award from Youth Mentoring Connection. She co-wrote the article "How Foundations Fail Diverse Fund Managers and How to Fix It," recently published in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, and co-created the Due Diligence 2.0 Commitment.
Ms. Gray previously served as a senior advisor for international business to the LA Mayor, an investment professional at a venture capital fund, and a systems engineer on the Space Shuttle program. She holds a B.S. in Mathematical Science with an aeronautics emphasis from UC Santa Barbara and dual MBAs from Columbia University and UC Berkeley.