Sandbox

Applications are open! We are excited about all of the applicants for SB05 so far. Spread the word if you know anyone that would be interested.

Sandbox is coming to the University of Louisville! Applications for the first cohort (SB05!) will open in the next few weeks. Admitted students will begin in the summer of 2025. Huge thanks to Ryan Quinn, Trysh Wahlig, Andrew Wright, and John Naber. Without their vision, this wouldn’t have been possible.

I thought that coming to the U.S. to get an education as a first-gen student with no money, no family living here, and no knowledge of the language was the hardest thing I’d ever done. But Sandbox has been a humbling experience that’s shown me there’s always something bigger and harder out there. It’s reignited the internal fire I had when I moved to the U.S. in 2018. During my internship this summer at Southwest Airlines, I met with the VP of the technology department. In our conversation—after sharing my story—he seemed surprised and asked me what my end goal was. I took a couple of seconds to think and said, “Well, I’ve never had anything, so I have nothing to lose. I want everything, sir. I want to have my own company, build something great, and have the chance to give back and lift others like me who once didn’t think there was a chance of success for them. What seems impossible, that’s what I want. And honestly, that sounds pretty impossible for me right now.” I know, that was super cheesy, right? But I keep thinking about that conversation, especially since trying to become a founder is so mentally and emotionally exhausting. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. It’s been interesting navigating the feeling of being restless all the time because my mind is always on what I’m building. I’m grateful that Sandbox is making the impossible possible for people like me. I truly believe in this program and how it has changed and will continue to change the lives of those who go through it. That’s Chris Crittenden’s vision—to empower and change students’ lives. There’s nothing I would rather do in my senior year of school. I feel lucky to have Mason Hunter and Preston Thomas as cofounders on this journey. Their unique skills bring flavor to our team; their hard work and commitment give me hope that we have what it takes. Special shoutout to Scott Evanson for being the best director and for always being willing to help and share his wisdom. Every week is a roller coaster, and I’m excited for what this new week will bring! With that being said… y’all should keep an eye on Caster ??

Meet Kat and Tyler, the Local Managing Directors for the Utah Valley University cohort. Kat Kennedy is passionate about building - products, companies, and the startup ecosystem as a whole. Before joining Kickstart Fund as a General Partner, Kat was President and CXO of Degreed, a company dedicated to changing how people develop skills, build expertise, and grow their careers. She was instrumental in driving Degreed’s growth, shaping its product and culture, and deepening its client relationships. She partnered closely with Degreed’s customers to accelerate innovation and ensure their ability to quickly reallocate talent to the most critical strategic priorities. Kat’s 15 years of operating experience give her a unique perspective as an investor - one that allows her to not only spot talented entrepreneurs from all backgrounds but also to serve as a mentor, fostering innovation through every stage of the company’s growth. Tyler Jennings has sat in all of the operational seats. He is a natural leader and community builder. Tyler currently operates as a Venture Partner at 2.0 Ventures. He has founded multiple companies, sits on the board of multiple private companies, and previously led a $100M+ revenue division of a large multinational (Legrand). While at Legrand, he led multiple acquisition and integration processes, working with founders, investment bankers, and internal teams to execute transactions. He has led product, strategy, and sales teams. His experience as an operator spans SAAS, fintech, hardware/IoT, big box and e-commerce retail, media, marketplace tech, energy management, and data center verticals. Tyler has consulted dozens of businesses as an innovation and GTM consultant. He's passionate about helping entrepreneurs learn from others. He leads a community of builders and investors who work together to level up their businesses called Reference Group. Tyler loves helping startups figure out all aspects of their business.

George is a founder of SoloSuit(YC W21). SoloSuit has helped Americans protect over $600 million from predatory debt lawsuits. George graduated from BYU Law School in 2020. In his spare time, he likes to cook because he likes to eat. George is a newly added Founder Advisor in the Sandbox Stack and is committed to giving back to founders.

What Chris Crittenden and the team are doing at Sandbox will produce more founders out of Utah than any previous effort. One of those examples is Cairo Murphy ?? who a year ago was studying at BYU, and fast forward is now Founder & CEO at Stratus. From it being an idea, to being something that customers are using every single day. He knew he wanted to BUILD, and didn't let anything stop him. We are grateful to have him as a customer and that he who is someone I can call when i have my own "BUILD" questions.

Peter and Jeff are the managing directors for the Utah Tech University cohort. They are dedicated to giving back and helping the founders at UTU. Peter built The Workflow Academy (a career education product acquired by Aspireship) and built and owns a small CRM consulting firm. He's heavily involved in trying to create a sustainable job market in Southern Utah (read: trying to convince every local he meets to build a scalable startup). Jeff spent 10 years at Amazon and launched and grew two different businesses: Amazon Lending and Prime Video Direct. Since then he's held executive-level positions at two early-stage software companies (CircleUp and Silo). He's also done advisory work for InFlux.AI, Product School, Alexa Accelerator, and TechStars. Get to know Peter: ??-In the 99.99th percentile for "how fast can you type the alphabet" (1.62 seconds) ??-Wore headgear at night from 3rd - 5th grade ??-(Related to the headgear) Knows A LOT about competitive Pokémon battling ??-Has a wonderful family life with a wife par excellence and 2 cool small children Get to know Jeff: ??-Drummer in a local classic rock band Tilted Jukebox ??-Just hiked the Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim ??-Amazing wife who is a retired chemical engineer -> now a 2nd grade teacher! ??-Has 4 kids who are all way cooler than he is

Chad is a Double Aggie having earned B.S. and M.S. degrees at Utah State University. He returned to Utah State as a faculty member in the Computer Science department after completing a PhD in Computer Science at the University of Notre Dame in 2006. He left his faculty position in 2011 to run a small family business which they sold in 2018. A few years before selling, Chad returned to his previous job in a teaching-only position (happy to avoid publishing and grant writing) and continues in that role today. While running his business, Chad had many opportunities to speak to audiences about leadership, sales, and other various topics. Many knew he was a college professor and would ask, “Why don’t they teach that in college?” Chad is thrilled to be part of Sandbox at USU where he can finally answer that question with, “We do!” Doug is the Executive Director of the Analytics Solutions Center at Utah State University. Doug received his Ph.D. in Management Information Systems from the University of Arizona. He holds a master’s degree in computer science from Texas A&M University and a master’s degree in business administration from San Jose State University. He is a Distinguished Graduate (top 6%) of the United States Air Force Academy. Before joining USU, Dr. Derrick was the Associate Dean for Research and the Mutual of Omaha Distinguished Chair of Information Science and Technology at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. He also worked for several years in industry as a Program Manager at MacAulay-Brown, Inc. Preceding that, he was proud to serve as an Air Force officer. He has won grants from the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, the National Science Foundation, and multiple private companies. Chad and Doug are the managing directors for the Utah State University cohort.

Sandbox was a life-changing event, and here’s why: It was all about real-world application. This wasn’t your typical classroom setting where professors lecture and students mindlessly scribble notes. It was real. It was raw. Connor Ashton and I had plenty of nights where we felt like banging our heads against the wall because another idea had failed. But there were also nights when we felt on top of the world. Sandbox is a unique approach to modern college education. The program allows students to truly apply what they learn and teaches us how to tackle the challenges real businesses face. I personally don’t know of a single thing like it. I highly recommend Sandbox to anyone looking to play a critical role in building their future. #startups #college #application #software #interval #sandbox

Stratus is changing the way front desks operate in healthcare. Founded by Cairo and Thomas, Stratus supercharges patient insurance verification, making the calls to insurance companies for you, and gathering the necessary patient info. Saving you time and money in the process. Stratus is a BYU Sandbox success story that is still building. Cairo and Thomas are both BYU Sandbox Alumni from the SB03 cohort. They broke the record for ARR coming out of Sandbox with 60k ARR on demo day. Since demo day in April, they have grown their ARR by over 10x. Using AI Stratus aims to help healthcare practices save time, make more money, and operate more efficiently.