Baylor's Accelerated Ventures Program Honored by Southwestern Business Deans' Association
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WACO, Texas (May 16, 2013) - The Southwestern Business Deans' Association has named Baylor University's Hankamer School of Business the 2013 Bobby G. Bizzell Innovative Achievement Award winner for its Accelerated Ventures Program.
"On behalf of faculty and staff at Hankamer School of Business who have made this program such a success, we appreciate this recognition by the Southwestern Business Deans' Association," said Terry S. Maness, D.B.A., dean of the Hankamer School of Business.
The Southwestern Business Deans' Association (SWBDA) established the Bobby G. Bizzell Innovative Achievement Award in an effort to encourage innovation and continuous improvement in business education. The award is sponsored by BloombergBusinessWeek.
The winning proposal "Baylor Entrepreneurship's Accelerated Ventures Program," detailed the impact the program has had since its inception in 2011.
"We are honored to win this award," said Kendall Artz, Ph.D., chairman of the department of management and entrepreneurship at Baylor University. "During its relatively short existence, the AV program has proven to have a very significant impact on our students, our alumni and our community."
Accelerated Ventures is a two-course sequence that instructs and requires students to launch high-potential businesses while adhering to a demanding launch schedule. By enhancing traditional entrepreneurial pedagogical methods, it provides students with an intensively experiential learning environment.
Accelerated Ventures was created as a solution to challenges resulting from the dramatic impact of social media on the startup process. Unless a student entrepreneur is working with social media in the new startup environment daily, it is nearly impossible for them to fully understand the implications of social media on their efforts to launch such enterprises. Without that understanding, the student's chances of venture success is greatly diminished. To that end, Accelerated Ventures is co-taught by a practicing serial entrepreneur who has successfully navigated these social media waters through personal ventures and is a member of the university's entrepreneurship faculty.
The Southwestern Business Deans' Association was established for the purpose of promoting and improving collegiate business education generally located in the southwestern region of the United States and Mexico.
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian university and a nationally ranked research institution, characterized as having "high research activity" by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The university provides a vibrant campus community for approximately 15,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating university in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 11 nationally recognized academic divisions. Baylor sponsors 19 varsity athletic teams and is a founding member of the Big 12 Conference.
ABOUT HANKAMER SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
Baylor University's Hankamer School of Business provides a rigorous academic experience, consisting of classroom and hands-on learning, guided by Christian commitment and a global perspective. Recognized nationally for several programs, including Entrepreneurship and Accounting, the school offers 24 undergraduate and 13 graduate areas of study. Visit www.baylor.edu/business and follow on Twitter at twitter.com/Baylor_Business.