Nonprofit Coffee With A Cause Announces Former Leadership Pasadena Chair Deb Raupp Has Joined Its Board

Deb Raupp, a management consultant who was Leadership Pasadena’s first board chair, has joined the board of directors of Coffee With A Cause, the Pasadena nonprofit announced.

Coffee With A Cause operates Rosebud Coffee, a social enterprise that puts 100% of its profits toward the nonprofit’s mission. The organization said Raupp’s expertise will support it as it prepares to expand that model to additional locations and serve significantly more youth.

Its ‘Ready, Set, Hire’ program serves young people ages 16 to 24 who have experienced foster care, homelessness or justice system involvement.

The nonprofit said the program provides paid internships, industry-recognized certificates, mentorship, job-readiness training and connections to employment.

The organization runs Rosebud cafés at 2302 E. Colorado Blvd. in Pasadena and at 5858 N. Figueroa St. in Highland Park. As it expanded to Highland Park, the organization added two board members with ties to that neighborhood, founder and executive director Dan Davidson said in March.

Raupp owns Raupp Consulting Group, which advises organizations and leaders in the United States, Africa, Europe and Asia on organizational culture and values, change management, leadership development and executive coaching, the nonprofit said.

She was previously a global vice president at Jacobs, where she created and launched the company’s corporate university. Raupp also implemented a global management development program that was instituted in more than 30 countries. Coffee With A Cause said the programs and processes she developed supported the company’s growth from approximately 400 employees to more than 60,000. Her responsibilities included global leadership and organizational development, change management, business management training and company-wide initiatives, according to the nonprofit.

Before joining Jacobs, Raupp was director of staff development at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she led leadership development across 25 departments, the organization said. She also introduced organizational development, career development and diversity and inclusion programs there, according to the nonprofit.

Raupp rejoined the Leadership Pasadena board in 2017 as vice president of programs. The nonprofit said her community work has also included service as a Pasadena commissioner and on several nonprofit and leadership boards, mentoring through Imagine LA, and volunteering with Union Station Homeless Services and as a Big Sister.

“Deb Raupp is joining Coffee With A Cause at an important point in our growth,” said Andy Eaton, chair of the board and a retired vice president of Eurofins Eaton Analytical. “As we grow to new locations and create opportunities for more young people, Deb will help us ensure we build the leadership, systems and culture needed to sustain that growth and our impact,” Eaton said.

The nonprofit has served more than 100 young people and aims to serve 60 in 2026, according to the California Community Foundation, which distributed a state grant that supported the Highland Park café. Davidson said in March that he sees Highland Park as a test of whether the Rosebud model can be replicated, and that if it goes well, “yes, I definitely believe we have a model to share with Southern California.”