Fall FastTrac Session To Start In September

by Alan Hunt

Another FastTrac program designed to sharpen the business skills of entrepreneurs is scheduled to get underway during the first week of September at Baylor University's Hankamer School of Business.
A national program geared toward aspiring and current entrepreneurs, FastTrac has been holding classes in Waco since 1996. The program is a cooperative community effort presented by the Waco Chamber of Commerce, the City of Waco and Baylor's John F. Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship.
Two sessions are offered, including FastTrac NewVenture, recommended for beginning entrepreneurs or those with an idea for a business. The NewVenture program will begin Sept. 3 and run for nine weeks. FastTrac Planning, for existing entrepreneurs or those who have owned a business for more than two years, will begin Sept. 3 for 11 weeks. Classes are held each Tuesday from 6 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. at Baylor's Hankamer School of Business.
"We would encourage interested persons to complete an application and return it as soon as possible, since enrollment will be limited," said Mary Abrahams, program coordinator at the John Baugh Center. The application deadline is Aug. 15.
Abrahams said the FastTrac Entrepreneurial Training Program can teach participants the specialized knowledge, skills and insights they need to be successful entrepreneurs. Describing it as the "ultimate entrepreneurial training program," she said FastTrac has helped more than 10,000 businesses nationwide to improve and achieve success.
"Our Waco FastTrac program has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs in Central Texas since its inception six years ago," she said.
The instructor for FastTrac Planning will be Allan Morris, president of Extraco Bank, and Rob Gibson, owner of Holze Music Co., will be the instructor for FastTrac NewVenture. The FastTrac NewVenture fee is $400 and FastTrac Planning is $800. Fee covers materials and textbooks. Tuition remission is available, based on need.
Baylor business students also are involved in the program as consultants in the fields of industry research, sales/marketing strategy, promotional brochure development, and accounting software selection, installation, and use. The student consultants are junior, senior and graduate-level students, most of them majoring in entrepreneurship, who are enrolled in a field studies course.
Applications for the program are available at the Business Resource Center, 401 Franklin Ave., in Waco. For more information about the FastTrac program, contact Abrahams at (254) 710-4159 or Malinda Green, administrative assistant, at (254) 710-4157.