Scott M. Sipprelle

Scott M. Sipprelle is a venture capitalist, currently running for the United States House of Representatives in the 12th Congressional District of New Jersey. Scott founded Westland Ventures, a Princeton, New Jersey based investment firm, which helps emerging companies by providing growth capital.

Personal Life and Education

Scott was born to diplomats and spent much of his childhood living abroad, primarily in Latin America and the Middle East, witnessing American foreign policy first hand. Scott’s parents spent three decades protecting the United States’ foreign policy interests abroad. Scott is a lifelong baseball fan and an avid athlete. He enjoys all forms of outdoor activities, and especially enjoys running, swimming, and biking. Scott graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Hamilton College in 1985 with a B.A. in Economics along with a minor in government. He was the recipient of the Clark Prize in Public Speaking. Scott married his college sweetheart Tracy. They are the parents of three children Jessica, David, and Stephen. Scott and his family currently live in Princeton, New Jersey.

       In September of 2009 Scott published his first novel,The Golden Dog. The novel is a mystery set on Wall St.   

Business Career

In 2007 Scott founded the investment firm, Westland Ventures. Westland Ventures provides growth capital for emerging companies. Westland Ventures has been the lead investor in BlogTalkRadio, Zhena’s Gypsy Tea, The Narragansett Brewing Company, and The Bank of Princeton. Scott has served as Chairman of the Advisory Board for The Bank of Princeton. In 2006, The Bank of Princeton was incorporated in order to serve the community banking needs of its local market area. Many local businesses have been able to expand thanks, largely in part, to the banks loans and financial counseling. Previous to his 2007 founding of Westland Ventures, Scott had a highly successful career as a senior executive in the financial services industry. From 1985 to 1998 Scott worked for Morgan Stanley, where, at 32, he became a managing director and came to head the firm’s Equity Capital Markets Division. In this position Scott was raising growth capital for U.S. corporations. In 1998, Scott decided to leave Morgan Stanley to found his first firm, Copper Arch Capital. Scott spent a decade managing the finances of numerous, prestigious foundations and some of the largest university endowments in the country. Scott consistently and dramatically outperformed the market indices.

Local Activism and Political Experience

Scott has been a leader in the Princeton Little League organization and has been President of the Princeton-Cranbury Babe Ruth Baseball League. Scott is also a trustee of the Historical Society of Princeton. He has served on a citizen’s committee which examined property revaluation in the surrounding area. Scott frequently hosts fundraisers in his historic home, which was once owned by President Grover Cleveland. Through these fundraisers he has helped raise money for Isles, The Historical Society, Historic Morven, D&R Greenway, and The Garden Club of Princeton, among many other charitable organizations. Scott is the founder of the Sipprelle Charitable Corporation, where he and his wife Tracy have remained steadfast supporters of local philanthropic endeavors—especially those focused on education and self-reliance programs with regards to combating poverty. The Sipprelle Foundation provided primary funding for the founding of Isles Community Enterprises, an organization centered on financial literacy and micro-lending in Trenton. Scott first became active in politics when, as a college student, he served as an intern for Senator Pete Wilson (R-CA). Scott has been active in the Republican Association of Princeton and the Mercer County Capital Republican Club. He currently serves as a Republican Committeeman for the 8th District in Princeton Borough. In 2009, Scott and his wife hosted the enormously successful Lincoln Day Dinner, for then-gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie.

2010 Congressional Campaign

On the night of January 13th, 2010 Scott announced his intention of running against, six-term incumbent Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ). Sipprelle promised to focus on “common-sense solutions” and to take back Washington from the career politicians. This is Scott’s first run for political office, and in a statement he said, “I’m not running for Congress simply to be competitive or put up a good fight.” In a vow to be an independent voice on Capitol Hill Scott said, “Frankly, any Congressman — of either party — who votes with his party boss 98 or 99 percent of the time is just a cog in the partisan machine that is tearing this country apart. He is not exercising wisdom, principle or good judgment, or putting his country first. You deserve better.”

The Sipprelle for Congress campaign website introduces Scott’s “Blueprint for Renewal” which reads: “What I Believe: America is the greatest economic success story the world has ever seen. Our history proves, indisputably, that the most effective way to provide for the needs of our people is by embracing the principles of individual liberty, personal responsibility, and free markets. We need to reclaim the great American ideal of entrepreneurship and innovation and remove the chokehold of big government that is imperiling the vitality of our private sector. Only a prosperous society can be a compassionate one.” The major components of Scott Sipprelle’s platform include his real experience in job creation, a desire to revive the economy, and a proposal to reform Washington. Scott Sipprelle is a successful businessman who has spent his entire career investing in the growth of American private sector jobs. Sipprelle believes the best way to improve the economy and create jobs is to cut taxes for individuals and small businesses, while reducing the size of government. Scott will fight to enact term limits for all members of Congress and to create a fairer Federal tax code.

External links

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