News Detail

Tepper School Establishes The James R. Swartz Entrepreneurial Fellowship Program

Release Date: May 18, 2006

PITTSBURGH – Beginning this summer, twelve promising MBA students at the Tepper School of Business who have shown an entrepreneurial edge will gain invaluable knowledge of business ventures through a new hands-on mentorship program. As the first James R. Swartz Entrepreneurial Fellows, these select students will combine Tepper’s leading curriculum in entrepreneurship with an exclusive, mentorship-driven internship over the summer and a leadership-focused experiential program throughout their second year of MBA studies.

The new Fellows Program is the result of a generous gift from renowned venture capitalist James R. Swartz, a graduate of the Tepper School of Business and co-founder of Accel Partners, a global venture capital firm that counts several of the most significant revolutions in technology businesses among its investments, including Veritas Software, RealNetworks and Macromedia.

The first-year Tepper students selected as the first Swartz Fellows are Nathan Allen, Ernest Braxton, Gregory Clumpner, Jesse Goellner, Amanda Fox, Amanjyot Johar, Eric Koger, Nicole Smith, Sola Tabai, Tony Thai, Mark Thomas and Adil Wali. Students are selected for the program based on their demonstrated leadership skills, passion for entrepreneurship and innovation, and overall academic excellence.

“These students represent some of the best and brightest minds in entrepreneurship at Carnegie Mellon,” said Arthur A. Boni, John R. Thorne Chair of Entrepreneurship at the Tepper School. “This new program will give them an unparalleled experience and learning opportunity that will serve them for a lifetime throughout their future endeavors.”

Leading the Pack in Entrepreneurship

In addition to a robust curriculum, Fellows will participate in a paid summer internship at an entrepreneurial company that will include intensive mentoring by Tepper faculty, the company’s CEO or other designated executive, and a Tepper graduate who is a successful entrepreneur or part of the venture capital industry. The program will extend into their second year of study, with a mentored, team-based capstone project in another entrepreneurial organization during their final semester. In addition, a new series of seminars that brings leading entrepreneurs to the Carnegie Mellon campus will further enhance the student experience. This seminar series, known as the Swartz Leadership Forum, will be run by the Fellows and benefit the entire Carnegie Mellon and Pittsburgh entrepreneurial communities.

Internships and the capstone projects will take place in sites across the U.S., beginning in Silicon Valley, giving the students on-the-ground perspective of the various dynamics and trends in the technology and biotech industries. “This program has been designed to provide students with direct exposure to the centers of entrepreneurship and venture capital across the U.S.,” said Swartz. “I believe strongly that this will enhance the education of these students as they prepare to launch their own ventures in the future.”

Long considered a leader in entrepreneurial education, the Tepper School was one of the first business schools to offer formal entrepreneurship courses, and was recognized by The Wall Street Journal in its most recent MBA ranking as one of the top entrepreneurship programs in the nation. The Tepper School is also home to the Donald H. Jones Center for Entrepreneurship, which brings together several of Carnegie Mellon’s other renowned schools – including the School of Computer Science, the Carnegie Institute of Technology (engineering) and the Mellon College of Science – to offer exceptional interdisciplinary entrepreneurial education programs and resources to students.

The Swartz Fellowships will be a centerpiece of the Tepper MBA Track in entrepreneurship, which focuses on opportunity development and marketing strategy, resource acquisition and allocation, and team building – all critical areas for future entrepreneurs to consider in their efforts to launch and sustain a venture. Launched in 2004, the Tracks are eight focused options available for students to pursue a more in-depth focus in a specific industry or discipline, such as biotechnology, management of innovation and product development, or wealth and asset management.

A Leading Venture Capitalist – and Tepper Alumnus – Gives Back

Swartz, a 35-year veteran of the venture capital industry, has served as a director for over forty successful companies throughout his career. Prior to founding Accel, Swartz was founding General Partner of Adler & Company and vice president of Citicorp Venture Capital, and has also served as a management consultant. In addition to his master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon, he holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and an honorary doctorate from the Western Governors University, and serves on the Business Board of Advisors for the Tepper School of Business. In 1995, Swartz also endowed another scholarship – currently the school’s largest such endowment – that provides partial tuition scholarships to a select group of master’s students each year.


A resident of Park City, Utah, he is chairman of the Swartz Foundation and the Christian Center of Park City, serves as board member and chairman of the Investment Committee of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Foundation, and was a member of the Management Committee of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games.

“We’re delighted with Jim’s gift which will provide a truly unique experience and opportunity for our most promising entrepreneurial students,” said Kenneth B. Dunn, dean of the Tepper School. “This new program will enable Carnegie Mellon to achieve even greater heights in its pursuit of the premier educational experience for these young people, and will have a lasting impact on both the Tepper and business communities.”

Founded in 1949, the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon is a pioneer in the field of management science and analytical decision making. The school’s notable distinctions include a unique contribution to the intellectual community including six Nobel laureates and a consistent presence in the top tier of business school rankings including being named the No. 3 business school in the United States and #3 internationally by The Wall Street Journal.

# # #