DARREN SNYDER

DARREN SNYDER
Past: Board Vice President

Board Member Since 2012

Partner

Prairie Capital LP

Darren Snyder has over sixteen years of private equity experience in addition to his previous years of middle market lending and insurance experience. He currently serves as Partner in Prairie Capital, and is responsible for investment origination, due diligence, deal structuring, and negotiation. Darren also has portfolio management responsibility for Prairie Capital, with board responsibilities for over eighteen platform companies across Prairie’s five funds. Darren is currently a director for five Prairie Capital portfolio companies, including Stylecraft Home Collection, National Enzyme Corporation, Insource Performance Solutions, Pioneer Metal Finishing, and Tower Engineering Professionals.

Prior to joining Prairie Capital, Darren spent six years working closely with privately-held businesses as a Vice President for American National Bank and Trust Company (now part of J.P Morgan Chase). While with American National Bank, Darren’s experiences included financing leveraged buyouts, venture backed firms, and managing a relationship-based lending portfolio of middle market companies. Prior to joining American National, Darren was a commercial underwriter for an insurance company, and owned and operated a family-held business. Darren is a former Chairman and current Board Member of the Illinois Venture Capital Association (IVCA), and recipient of the Fellows Medal for outstanding contributions to the private equity profession and to the Illinois Venture Capital Association. Darren has also served on the board of the National Association of Small Business Investment Companies (now the SBIA), and is a former President of the Midwest Region.

Darren graduated magna cum laude from Drake University with a B.A. in Economics. He received an MBA from the University of Chicago, and continues to be active with the university, guest lecturing in private equity classes and acting as a judge in the New Venture Challenge competition. Darren, his wife and three boys live in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of Chicago. In addition to his responsibilities at Prairie, Darren and his wife have been active participants in the support of their community and schools through a variety of volunteer and fundraising services, among them Lookingglass Theatre Company, LINK Unlimited and the Park West Nursery Co-op. Darren also is a former President of the founding board of Polaris Charter Academy, a free, public school option for K-8 children in the West Humboldt Park neighborhood of Chicago.

Bio as of 2017