April 6, 2018
Clif Bar and Bard MBA Launch Academic Partnership
New York, NY–Who will lead the businesses of the future? Clif Bar & Company, a pioneer in the world of mission-driven business, is betting on its people in a new partnership with the MBA in Sustainability at Bard College.
Bard and Clif Bar have announced an agreement that will provide guaranteed scholarships to Clif Bar employees and their immediate family members to attend Bard’s innovative MBA in Sustainability. Bard will provide eligible students with at least a 25% tuition scholarship, on top of the Clif Bar’s support for employees of up to $10,000 in tuition reimbursement.
“Bard’s approach to MBA education—fully integrating a focus on sustainability and purpose into a core business curriculum– will prepare Clif employees to be leaders in sustainable business,” said Elysa Hammond, VP of Sustainability at Clif Bar. “Extending the scholarship to partners and children is a terrific added benefit for our people.”
The low-residency MBA program, based in New York City, also meets the needs of working professionals. Students attend the MBA one extended weekend each month, and also take classes on-line Tuesday and Thursday nights. This means that Clif Bar employees all over the country can take advantage of the MBA opportunity. Currently, there are Bard MBA students who fly in once each month to New York from locations as diverse as Los Angeles, Boulder, Austin and Atlanta.
Bard and Clif Bar have a long history. Dr. Eban Goodstein, founder and Director of the Bard MBA, was inspired by Clif’s journey to become a mission-focused company. Clif Bar’s success provided Goodstein with a real-world model for a new kind of business leadership—and a new kind of MBA.
“Clif Bar actively manages for five bottom lines”, said Goodstein. “In major decisions the company integrates the interests of their people, the communities they serve, their brand integrity, the planet, and the financial success of the company. Rather than trade-offs, Clif Bar finds the synergies.”
Clif Bar was also instrumental in helping launch the Bard MBA in Sustainability. When Bard’s new graduate degree opened its doors in 2012, the Clif Bar Family Foundation made a $100,000 “Program Related Investment” into the MBA—effectively, a low-interest loan.
That investment paid off. The Bard MBA will make the final payment on the loan, with interest, next year. With this new academic partnership, Clif Bar and Bard’s MBA are supporting a highly productive new investment: this time, in the company’s people.
For more information about this opportunity, please email Bard MBA Admissions Counselor, Caitlin O’Donnell at [email protected].
About Clif Bar & Company:
Clif Bar & Company crafts nutritious and organic food to feed and inspire adventure, including the CLIF® BAR® energy bar; CLIF Kid®, Nourishing Kids in Motion® and LUNA®; The Whole Nutrition Bar. Family and employee-owned, the company is committed to sustaining its people, brands, business, community and the planet. For more information on Clif Bar & Company, please visit www.clifbar.com, check out our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/clifbar and follow us at www.twitter.com/clifbar and www.instagram.com/clifbar.
The Bard MBA in Sustainability educates leaders to grow mission-driven businesses and nonprofits, and to transform existing organizations to focus on social and environmental purpose. Based in New York City, and operating in a one-weekend each month plus on-line format, the program offers the best possible academic training, real-world experiences, and career development opportunities that, together, enable our graduate business students to follow their passions and pursue successful, high-impact careers in sustainable business. To learn more, please visit www;bard.edu/mba.