Shay Hawkins joins Revitate Social Impact Council
Revitate is pleased to announce Shay Hawkins as the newest member of the firm’s Social Impact Council.
Mr. Hawkins is the Co-founder and President of the Opportunity Funds Association, an advocacy, education, and communications organization established to enable Opportunity Fund managers and investors in Opportunity Funds to participate in public policy, share best practices and communicate the industry’s contributions to distressed rural and urban communities across the country. Shay previously served as staff director for the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources and Infrastructure and as senior tax and economic policy advisor to Senator Tim Scott (R-SC). Shay also previously served on the Board of Advisors to RevOZ Capital, an opportunity zone investment platform co-founded by Revitate’s Managing Partners Alex Bhathal and Lisa Merage.
“Revitate is investing in Opportunity Zones in the way Congress intended; strategically intentional about social impact, intentional about rebuilding the local tax base, and intentional about working with diverse investors, developers, and entrepreneurs. I am honored to join their Social Impact Council,” Shay Hawkins, Co-founder and President of the Opportunity Funds Association.
Revitate’s Social Impact Council is comprised of diverse, multidisciplinary leaders with deep community, government, and business expertise. The Council advises the firm on overall social impact strategy, including development of new tools and methodologies to ensure strong community engagement, impact assessment, and fund transparency and reporting. Shay joins six other business and civic leaders on the council and will specifically focus on advising Revitate’s efforts to spur broader economic and community development through its Revitate Impact opportunity zone investments.
“We are thrilled to welcome Shay to the Social Impact Council,” said Lisa Merage, Revitate Co-Founder, Managing Partner, and Chief Impact Officer. “Shay brings such a wealth of insight and expertise from both public policy and investor perspectives. He has and will continue to be a tremendous asset to the Revitate community.”
To date, Mr. Bhathal and Ms. Merage have led or co-led four Opportunity Zone funds that have invested into 15 projects with over $1.5B in total capitalization. Mr. Bhathal was named 2019 Opportunity Zone Investor of the Year.
The full Social Impact Council includes:
Hon. Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, former Democratic Mayor of Baltimore and CEO, SRB & Associates
Hon. Mick Cornett, former Republican Mayor of Oklahoma City and Author, The Next American City
Josh Childress, CEO, LandSpire Group and former NBA player
Shay Hawkins, the President and CEO of the @ Opportunity Funds Association
Derrick Morgan, Managing Partner, KNGDM Group and former NFL player
Rachel Reilly, Founder, Aces and Arches and former Director of Impact Strategy, EIG
Brett Theodos, Senior Fellow, Urban Institute