The Board of Commissioners of the Associate Degree Commission of the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) has granted national accreditation to the Associates of Science degree in Entrepreneurship at San Diego Miramar College. This brings the total number of accredited business programs at San Diego Miramar College to seven.
The Entrepreneurship Program at Miramar College is one of only three entrepreneurship programs at a 2-year community college in California, and the only program in the San Diego region to be nationally accredited.
“San Diego Miramar College is excited to have seven business programs nationally accredited by ACBSP,” said Claudia-Estrada Howell, dean of Business, Technical Careers and Workforce Initiatives at San Diego Miramar College. “The Entrepreneurship program is one of the fastest growing and most popular degree granting programs at the college. It focuses on providing students with hands on training to take an idea and make it into a successful business venture. That journey is assisted by great mentorship from faculty, local business leaders and our students.”
San Diego Miramar College will support the associates of science degree in Entrepreneurship with the recent opening of the Regional Entrepreneurship Center – the REC Innovation Lab is a startup incubator focused on helping entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds to launch scalable, high-growth startups that use technology to solve problems.
“I am so proud that the Miramar College REC Innovation Lab has been recognized as the only nationally accredited entrepreneurship program in San Diego,” said Tanya Hertz, executive director of the REC Innovation Lab and associate professor of Entrepreneurship at Miramar College. “Hundreds of local San Diego business owners have received support from the REC since first opening its doors in 2020. Receiving this national recognition for our program is a source of pride for everyone who makes the Miramar College REC Innovation Lab possible, including the faculty, staff, students, and of course, our amazing mentors.”
There are many incubator programs in California, but often some groups are left out when it comes to joining them. Graduating students lose access to university-based programs, and many professional incubators are priced too high for entrepreneurs from underrepresented communities. Women and people of color are rarely targeted for inclusion and the focus is typically on later-stage companies that can show traction.
The REC Innovation Lab at San Diego Miramar College was created to change those dynamics by providing critical resources to entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds so they can follow their passions and turn ideas into startups. We prepare students who need support at the earliest stages of the business and get them ready to launch or transfer into other incubators.
Many of our students are veterans, minorities, women, first-generation college students, and people who would not typically join an incubator without the REC. In 2020, 51% of REC student founders were women, 71% were racial or ethnic minorities, 18% were black, and they range in age from 15 – 72 years. As of October 2020, 27 startups have been created through the REC and we have provided tech jobs through the City of San Diego and Workforce Partnership to 13 coders and developers all of whom qualified for financial assistance and reside in underserved communities in San Diego.
There are 116 community colleges in the state of California and San Diego Miramar College is one of only four to be nationally accredited in business by ACBSP (the only accreditor for 2-year business programs)
As an ACBSP accredited program, the faculty at San Diego Miramar College conducted a rigorous self-study of the programs, processes and procedures which develop and deliver business education to students enrolled in the program. The self-study evaluation included measurable evidence of how the business program meets the six national standards for quality in business education. At the conclusion of the self-study, peer evaluators from other two-year accredited business schools in the United States conducted a thorough site visit to evaluate the program. As a result of the site visit, the peer evaluators produced a summary report regarding their findings for ACBSP. The ACBSP Associate Degree Board of Commissioners granted their approval for national accreditation after a review of the report.
Established in 1988, ACBSP is the only organization offering specialized business accreditation for all degree levels, from associate to baccalaureate to doctoral degree programs. ACBSP accreditation certifies that the teaching and learning processes within the business programs offered through the San Diego Miramar College Business Department meet the rigorous educational standards established by ACBSP.
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