Sandbox was founded in 2020 at BYU’s Marriott School of Business by Chris Crittenden, entrepreneur and faculty member. Sandbox is designed to give students the skills and tools necessary to successfully build their own tech companies. From its beginnings at BYU, it didn’t take long for the program to grow. As of the 2024-2025 academic year, Sandbox is now at Utah State University, Utah Tech University, and Utah Valley University. Crittenden is looking to expand the program to even more schools in the future.
Crittenden was inspired to start Sandbox because he wanted to offer a new way of doing education. Beyond classrooms, worksheets and lectures, Sandbox is a hands-on, experiential learning program that helps students succeed by giving them the opportunity to start businesses.
In its first year, the program just helped students build projects for already existing companies, but it shortly transformed into the entrepreneurial incubator it is today. While that transition is by far the most significant change Sandbox has seen to date, Crittenden anticipates more changes to come in the future. Crittenden mentioned two hurdles the program will be jumping over. First, he is looking to provide more physical space and a more tailored location for Sandbox students. Crittenden expressed dismay that students in the program lack a consistent central gathering place to learn and work together. Second, he will be integrating specialized AI tools into the program to elevate the Sandbox experience further.
One of the keys to the success of the Sandbox program has been its collaborative nature. Students, even when working on separate businesses, are encouraged to help each other and communicate often. While Crittenden believes all aspects of the program are better in person than online, including the collaboration, Sandbox still provides the ability for students to easily connect with one another remotely. Everyone in the program is in a shared Slack channel. As Sandbox has expanded to more schools, its community of fledgling entrepreneurs has only grown, as has the opportunity for learning from peers. UVU’s status as a commuter school with many working students has made Sandbox’s integration with the school uniquely challenging, but UVU students in the program are still finding success.
Sandbox’s website says that even graduates who don’t continue working on their startups see improved career outcomes because of their being in the program. Crittenden said that about 10-15% of Sandbox students continue with their companies after finishing the program. He hopes to raise this number by continuing to further emphasize the in-person aspects of the program.
Sandbox is open to students of any major, though the program is specifically designed for people wanting to build tech companies and is mostly geared towards students majoring in the fields of Business, Technology/Computer Science, and Graphic Design. For those individuals, Sandbox counts for 18 credits towards their degree. Crittenden said even students of other majors, though, may find the opportunity to count Sandbox towards their degree by working with their academic advisor.
As Utah County’s Silicon Slopes have seen a booming tech industry over the last couple of decades, and that industry is continuing to see growth year after year, Sandbox stands out as a golden opportunity for young people here to throw their hat in the ring and get a head start in the economy of the future.
