Although he is and was busy as an investor and previous venture capitalist at Sequoia Capital where he focused on technology, engineering, research, energy, and internet investments, Michael Goguen sits on the boards of Quantenna Communications, Clean Cell, OpenDNS, R2 Semiconductors, Clickatell Inc, Infoblox, LogLogic, Think Finance, Synapsense, Litepoint, and Tula. He was an ATM Forum Technical Chairman.
Goguen is also an active and enthusiastic philanthropist in a variety of organizations. Some of those projects have included the following:
* Montana Code Girls of Flathead, Montana, part of Code Girls United, received a $50,000 donation from Michael and Jamie Goguen to support, educate about, and expand their program as well as competitions where free coding is taught to local girls in the fourth through eighth grades including those in tribal and under-served areas.
Further Reading: Michael Goguen | Forbes
The girls are taught computer science, the basics of coding, and form teams to figure out real-world problems that need solutions. They design, develop, and create a business plan, conduct market research, write the app’s code, and present the finished product in an actual demonstration.
They also take part in local, state, and regional competitions and eventually move on to continuing to be invested in STEM and to inventing apps for the real world.
Their annual Northwest Regional App Challenge for the whole state is also free to girls who have completed a project of coding. It awards scholarship prizes, like in a science fair, and those who make the semifinals then go on to give a presentation in front of a judges panel.
* The 2019 Great Whitefish Award was given to Michael Goguen, local philanthropist and venture capitalist, for donating to multiple causes in Whitefish and the Flathead Valley.
* Goguen was named a Top Citizen for 2018 at the Whitefish Chamber of Commerce’s annual Community Awards Gala. The honor was due to the numerous donations and investments he has made in Whitefish over the last decade. He was recognized for outstanding contributions to his community.
* The North Valley Food Bank got a new building in August of 2016 because of a $500,000 donation by Michael Goguen for that building and endowment fund, which topped off a fundraising drive. Their mission since 1977 has been to collect and process food and distribute temporary and chronic hunger needs to individuals and families in the community with inadequate means to provide for the basic need for food. They serve hundreds every week and more hundreds of meals to children during their Summer Meal Program.
Also Read: Michael Goguen – Member of the Board of Directors @ Click Security | Crunchbase
* Two Bear Air Rescue was founded and is entirely funded by Goguen. The rescue group is based in Whitefish, Montana, but is able to fly missions in the Inland Northwest. It rescued a stranded local backcountry skier in late winter 2016.
The local communities know that they can depend on Michael Gognen, often joined by his wife Jamie, for donations to better the lives of the residents and provide needed and appreciated services.
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