Eight schools were chosen this year to participate in the Idea Village’s nationally recognized MBA experiential learning program, IDEAcorps. Teams of MBAs from Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Loyola, Stanford, Tulane, and Yale are providing direct strategic consulting to New Orleans entrepreneurs throughout New Orleans Entrepreneur Week (NOEW). To date, the program has engaged over 500 individuals from over 20 business schools across the country.
“The program has catalyzed the New Orleans entrepreneurial community and created a real-world experience with entrepreneurship,” said Tim Williamson, co-Founder and CEO of The Idea Village.
“It is exciting to see top MBAs from around the country competing for this hands-on entrepreneurial program in New Orleans,” said Sara Thomas, 2009 IDEAcorps alum and Director of Product Management for The Idea Village. “IDEAcorps is a chance for MBA students to gain true startup experience, while contributing to the growth of New Orleans’ entrepreneurial community. The program has grown steadily since its inception because both the MBA teams and entrepreneurs receive tremendous impact.”
The MBA teams all participate in NOEW by collaborating with a high impact startup, working with them throughout the week to tackle a business challenge or leverage a strategic opportunity. The Tulane MBAs were assigned to work with IDEAxcelerator company eTax Credit Exchange, which recently launched in the Louisiana market to be the premiere online marketplace for buying and selling tax credits.
The members of the Tulane team include Conor Aucoin, Erynn Bell, Varun Kumar, David Bode, Gustavo Baptista, Heath Gardenhire, and Adrian Mendez.
Tulane team leader Conor Aucoin said, “this has been an amazing opportunity for us as MBAs to have a meaningful impact on the community and to put into action what we’ve been learning in the classroom. I honestly feel like I’m on a world class team and I’m blown away by my teammates everyday.” Aucoin also said the team is learning new things to take with them and that he would love an opportunity to participate again in the future.
For more information about the IDEAcorps program or the Tulane team, visit ideavillage.org.
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