Home » News » Acton's Online Newsroom

Acton's Online Newsroom

Acton School of Business Is Lauded for Its “Entrepreneurial Drive”

08.13.07

Austin, Texas (August 13, 2007) –

“Imagine a business school where professors can’t lecture …” the story begins. “It exists in Austin, Texas,” a journalist at the Austin American Statesman writes in an uplifting article that profiles the Acton School of Business.

The paper went on to single out Acton – the nation’s only MBA program tailored exclusively to entrepreneurship – for staying true to it mission, which Acton’s Co-Founder, Jeff Sandefer, explained in an interview with the journalist.

“Our goal with the school is to build the very best hands-on entrepreneurship school in the country,” said Sandefer. “Traditional business schools, while they do a lot of things, really aren’t focused on people who want to build and run businesses.”

The story also highlighted Acton’s unique approach to teaching entrepreneurship, contrasting it against the one-size-fits-all approach of many MBA schools.

“Teachers [at Acton] must be entrepreneurs,” the journalist writes. “There’s no tenure or research. Student evaluations determine teachers’ compensation, and the teacher who scores the lowest at year’s end is asked to undergo training before teaching again. “All lessons are based on case studies. Students are required to sell a product and work together to build circuit boards on a simulated assembly line. An entire course is devoted to finding a ‘Life of Meaning,’ and teachers are only allowed to ask questions.”

The article ends by addressing Acton’s success with grooming entrepreneurs, finishing with a quote from Chris Munson, who graduated in 2005 and is Chief Financial Officer of Austin’s Pizza.

“The practical skills give entrepreneurial students more options upon graduation than a traditional MBA,” Munson told the paper. “There are a lot of people just who want the piece of paper from a prestigious university. If that’s all you want, then Acton’s not the place for you.”

The Austin, Texas, based Acton MBA in Entrepreneurship is offered through Hardin Simmons University.

• Request Information
• Apply Now
• Refer a Potential Student
• Contact Us

News