Devan McLaren is a seasoned professional with 12+ years of client-facing experience, specializing in real estate, private equity finance, and the cannabis industry. His tenure at Ernst & Young LLP as a Management Consultant honed his skills in optimizing profitability for Fortune 500 multinational corporations, covering all aspects of project development and financial modelling. At the Fiore Group, Devan furthered his expertise in conducting due diligence, managing venture deals, and leading the development of comprehensive pro forma analyses. Seeking to make a positive social impact, he co-founded Our Academy and established Triple Beam Advisors, combining his financial modeling, forecasting, strategy, and project management skills to contribute to communities in need.

Hilary L. Yu is the founder of Our Dream, a cannabis media site that centers minorities and Our Academy, a 501(c)(3) precelerator and mentorship program for social equity applicants and BIPOC cannabis entrepreneurs. Our Academy’s inaugural cohort of 110 participants and 254 participants in cohort II from across the US covers a myriad topics spanning from compliance, to how to create a compliant SKU, and how to vet a financial partner. Mentees are also partnered with mentors holding founder and executive titles at cannabis companies including Old Pal, Vertosa, SF Roots, Flower Co, Sava, SF Roots, and many more.

Kimberly Dillon is a Marketing Executive focused on rapidly increasing adoption and awareness for emerging brands and categories. She was the first Black CMO of a multi-state cannabis brand, Papa & Barkley, where she launched over 30 new products, achieved over $30M in retail sales, and shaped legislation through serving on the NCIA Marketing Board.She is the founder of Plant & Prosper, named by Forbes as a top cannabis consulting firm, which helps position brands for success. She sits on the board of Our Academy and serves as a fundraising coach and curriculum developer for NY Cannabis Licensees.Currently, she is the Entrepreneurship Coach at the University of Michigan, where she reviews student business plans and financials, provides pitch coaching, and recommends resources. She has mentored at Startup Weekend, Founders Institute, 500 Startups, StartupLa, NSBE, and Seed Camp. Her graduate thesis examined best practices for entrepreneurship programs.As a serial entrepreneur, she has won over $100,000 in grants and helped raise an additional $25M in funding for startups.She has appeared on TV as an industry expert and was named a “Marketing Star” by Adweek and "Entrepreneur to Watch" by Fast Company. She has spoken at Goop, SXSW, and NCIA conferences.Kimberly holds an MBA from the University of Michigan and two undergraduate degrees from the University of Pittsburgh.‍

Sean has consulted for and worked with brands such as Banana Republic, Lululemon, Levi's, Coach, and Gillette. He has led major organizational and technology transformation efforts across all functional aspects of vertical product companies. He was also President and Chief Operating Officer of a vertical cannabis company in California, developed payments and e-commerce platforms, and advised AI infrastructure startups. He majored in Finance and Computer Science at Bentley University and received his MBA from NYU Stern. ‍

With sixteen years of executive and nonprofit leadership experience, Jessica cut her teeth in the Oregon cannabis industry, navigating the regulatory shift from medical to recreational in 2016. She was recruited to be the first Director of Compliance and Licensing for Cookies California in 2018 to spearhead expansion efforts across cultivation, manufacturing and distribution verticals. She has served as COO and CCO for well known companies in California and beyond, securing permits for retail in 5 states. In 2019 Jessica teamed up with nonprofits serving Social Equity Applicants in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Sacramento and Detroit as a Technical Advisor and for curriculum development. She continues cannabis education work today in her role as Advisor, Mentor, and Board Member with Our Academy.