John Heintzberger was a plant guy.
Two decades in agriculture gave him a lot of experience and sprouted new career ideas. “I was involved in a small, agriculture business. It came to a point where I was helping run it,” he said. “I started to wonder: how can I deepen my knowledge and learn more about running a business?”
“I started to wonder: how can I deepen my knowledge and learn more about running a business?”
Becoming an Online MBA Bronco in California
Heintzberger had long been a fan of The Blue and Boise State University, even as a longtime California resident. He was considering a career shift and graduate degree options, and then Boise State came to mind. As a distinguished university nestled in the City of Trees, Boise State’s reputation for innovation and high-quality education echoes far beyond the Treasure Valley. Heintzberger thought of the Master of Business Administration as his next step.
Boise State offers the Master of Business Administration in-person or online. Considering Heintzberger was in California with his family and had a busy life to manage, he chose the online program. “I was working full time, and I had a family. I didn’t have to stop my whole life and change everything to get a master’s degree,” he said.
Taking the Next Step with Boise State Online’s MBA
Boise State University’s Online Master of Business Administration (MBA) is designed for professionals with two or more years of management experience who are ready to advance in their professions. Online MBA students cultivate the skills necessary to be effective, ethical leaders and managers who affect positive change in their direct reports, organization and communities.
Coursework strengthens students’ business foundations, giving them the confidence, knowledge and language to share insights, make decisions and find solutions within an organization. The Online MBA builds on students’ depth of experience in a particular field by adding breadth of learning in business and management. Areas of emphasis include management, construction management, healthcare leadership and marketing leadership.
The Boise State Online MBA program is delivered in a convenient, 100 percent online format featuring seven-week courses and six start dates a year — a flexible program ideal for busy students like John Heintzberger. While in the Online MBA program, he moved his family across state lines, changed careers and started a new business.
A New State and a New Business
Heintzberger and his family moved from California to Idaho and started making plans to open a business in the Treasure Valley. He credits Boise State Online’s MBA program with giving him a foundation in business that was fundamental to launching his new venture. “In classes, we were exploring entrepreneurship questions like, ‘where do you start?’, ‘where do you leverage other people’s knowledge?’ and ‘how do you pull it all together in a business plan?’”
The Online MBA program helped him raise the Freedom Bagel Bakery to life. “We were getting to know the Valley and decided that we’d like to bring an authentic New York-style bagel to the area,” he said. “I worked with a bagel consultant from New Jersey/New York because we want to turn out a good product. We are going for an actual quality experience. We’re trying to use the best ingredients; it’s an intensive process.”
Graduation and A Bright Future
Freedom Bagel Bakery opened in Meridian, ID in 2022. Now, John Heintzberger is a bagel guy, but it has always been about food for him. “I’ve always been interested in the food business because I worked in agriculture. And now I’m starting a bagel bakery and my MBA definitely helped with that.”
He is now pursuing a new career and is excited about the future. “Without a doubt, the Online MBA was phenomenal. The professors were fabulous, and the coordinators were great,” he said. “Once you graduate — boom! You’re off and running.”
“Without a doubt, the Online MBA was phenomenal. The professors were fabulous, and the coordinators were great.”
John Heintzberger graduated from Boise State Online’s MBA program in 2021. Grab a Freedom bagel and say hello to him the next time you are in Meridian.
Learn More About Boise State Online’s Master of Business Administration
The new 2022 U.S. News and World Report rankings placed Boise State Online’s Master of Business Administration in the top 19% in the nation out of 328 institutions surveyed for Best Online Master of Business Administration programs.
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Story by Ashley Barnes and Pamela Craig, Boise State Extended Studies