Wauwatosa’s Silicon Pastures Angel Investment Network, a network of investors in early-stage and startup companies, will be hosting a free educational series for current and prospective angel investors in the coming months.

The first class takes place Dec. 18 and is capped at 18 attendees. Additional angel education classes will take place on Feb. 13, May 15, and July 17 of 2019.

In Wisconsin, angel funding was the most common method of funding in 2017, accounting for 52 percent of investment deals, according to Madison’s Wisconsin Technology Council.

Last year, 127 early-stage Wisconsin companies raised more than $231 million, the second-highest raise recorded in Wisconsin, but investment at the early stage level continues to fall in the state, the WTC says. In 2017, 37 percent of companies that sought funding were doing so for the first time, down from 38.7 percent in 2016 and 48 percent in 2015. To add, only 5.9 percent of investments made in 2017 came in the form of seed financing (very early stage investments, typically between $10,000 and $2 million), a decrease from 11.1 percent in 2016 and 17.9 percent in 2015. Read the full story here.