Thursday, November 5 · University of Denver · Tickets from $125
Startup School Conference
For Seed - Series A Founders

The One DayStartup MBA

Thursday, November 5, 2026 · University of Denver

This conference is for Founders who are ready to scale and want to learn more about capital options, operations, brand, and exiting, taught in one day by 25+ founders and investors who have built and sold their businesses.

Tickets are transferable · Groups of 5+ save up to 15%

Natalie Holloway, Co-founder and CEO of Bala
Closing fireside chatNatalie HollowayCo-founder & CEO, BalaBootstrapped Bala to $150M+ in sales
Seth Levine, Co-founder and General Partner of Foundry
Opening fireside chatSeth LevineCo-founder & General Partner, Foundry
Faculty
25+
Tracks, pick 2
4
Seats
300
Day, Nov 5
1
What one day gets you

A semester of answers, in one day.

Straight answers on capital.

Which money fits your business, what it really costs you, and who is writing checks right now.

2 working sessions, your pick.

Choose 1 track per round. Smaller rooms, specific questions, people who have solved them.

The room.

Founders at your stage, plus the investors, attorneys, and operators on the faculty. The reception is built for meeting them.

The workbook.

Every framework from the day in one Startup School Workbook you take home.

Pick your seat

A 2-year MBA costs six figures. This is the 1-day version, taught by people who have built the thing.

General Admission

$125
  • All mainstage sessions, including Show Me the Exit and the Natalie Holloway fireside
  • 2 breakout sessions, 1 per round
  • Catered lunch
  • The Startup School Workbook
  • Evening reception until 6:30 PM
Get my GA ticket

Premium

Recommended
$175

Everything in GA. The extra $50 gets you:

  • Lunch & Learn: Financing the Grey Area
  • Priority seating all day
  • Event swag
Get my Premium ticket

VIP

$350

Everything in Premium, plus:

  • The Founder Boardroom, presented by Eide Bailly: a VIP-only morning session at small tables with experts
  • VIP check-in at 8:45 AM
  • Included parking
Get my VIP ticket
Plans change?Tickets are transferable. Email team@startupschoolconference.com for help.
Coming with your team?Groups of 5+ save 10 to 15%

Thursday, Nov 5 · Check-in 10:00 AM (VIP 8:45 AM) · Program 11:00 AM to 6:30 PM · Sturm Hall, University of Denver

Our Speakers Have Been Featured In

ForbesWWDInc.Women's Health
Faculty

Meet the faculty

People who have actually built the thing you are trying to build.

Natalie Holloway
Co-founder & CEO, Bala

Natalie Holloway

Bootstrapped Bala to $150M+ in sales

Seth Levine
Co-founder & General Partner, Foundry

Seth Levine

Co-Founded a ~$4B Venture Firm and Wrote the Book on the Future of Business

Alyssa Chan-Evangelista
Founder, Inspired Media Corp

Alyssa Chan-Evangelista

From Ex-Actress to 7-Figure Social Strategist Coaching Maybelline's Team

Anna Zesbaugh
Founder + CEO, Corpse Reviver

Anna Zesbaugh

Nationally Distributed Brand, Multi-Million Dollar Company

Cindy Willard
Head of Capital Activation, Impact Charitable

Cindy Willard

Built Impact Investing Portfolios at Family and Community Foundations

Ethan Furtek
Integris Partners, M&A Broker

Ethan Furtek

Named One of Colorado's Top 5 Most Influential Young Professionals

Ila B Corcoran
Moderator, Sengo

Ila B Corcoran

Janet Hoang
Chief of Growth & Strategy, Selfmade

Janet Hoang

From a Viral Etsy Shop to Scaling a $44M Business

Partners

Campus Partners

Startup School runs on the organizations that believe founder education is worth investing in. Interested in partnering with us? We would love to talk about what that could look like for your team.

Our Community Partners
Eldorado Natural Spring Water
KO Law
Flodesk
Partner With Us
Agenda

A day built to move you forward.

Check-in: 8:45 AM VIP
10:00 AM Premium & GA

Sturm Hall at the University of Denver

Founders at work
8:45 AM
VIP onlyVIP Check-In
9:30 AM
VIP onlyThe Founder Boardroom, presented by Eide BaillyWork through your top business challenges in small groups with real experts before the day begins. Experts include Seth Levine of Foundry and John Common, CEO of Wisteria Growth Partners.
10:00 AM
Premium & GAPremium & GA Check-In
11:00 AM–12:15 PM
Opening MainstageSeth Levine (Foundry, GoodBread) and John Sebesta (University of Denver) open the main event with a conversation on why profitable, growing businesses get passed over by both banks and venture capital, the objections founders hear, and how investors spot a winning company.
1:15–2:30 PM
Lunch & Learn: Premium & VIPCatered Lunch + Lunch & Learn: “Financing the Grey Area”Founders in cannabis, psychedelics, ketamine and alternative medicine, peptides and GLP-1, and women’s health all hit the same wall. This session digs into how founders in regulated and emerging categories actually raise, bank, and scale when the traditional playbook does not apply. With Jennifer Beck, Jihi. Moderated by Kelly Campbell, Nurture.
What we’re coveringHide the topics
  • Cannabis & PsychedelicsBanking access, regulatory navigation, raising in a stigmatized category
  • Ketamine & Alternative MedicineScaling a clinical or wellness business outside conventional healthcare financing
  • Peptides & GLP-1Capital and compliance for a fast-moving, lightly regulated category
  • Women’s Health & Health TechClosing the funding gap in an underinvested sector
2:30–3:30 PM
3:30–4:15 PM
Presented byHolland & Hart
Mainstage Panel: “Show Me the Exit”What it really takes to sell a company: M&A, deal structure, and the founder psychology of letting go, from founders who have exited and the advisors who get deals done.
See the speakersHide the speakers
  • Robin McBrideCo-Founder of the McBride Sisters and Investor
  • Paige CoridenCorporate & M&A Partner, Holland & Hart LLP
  • Jess DrueyExited-Founder to Gallo
  • Ethan FurtekIntegris Partners, M&A Broker
4:15–5:00 PM
Fireside ChatNatalie Holloway, Co-founder & CEO of Bala
5:00–6:30 PM
Evening ReceptionFor every ticket.

You’ll choose one breakout in each round, giving you two focused working sessions alongside the full mainstage curriculum, lunch, and reception.

See the full syllabus →

Built for founders doing the work

This is for you if:

  • You have a product or service in market and real revenue coming in.
  • You are profitable or close, and banks and VCs still pass on you.
  • You are planning a raise in the next 12 months, or deciding whether to raise at all.
  • You are the bottleneck in your own company, and you know it.
  • You want to know what an exit actually takes before you need one.
  • You want a room of peers who will still answer your text in March.

Coming with your team?

Groups of 5 or more save 10 to 15 percent.

Get the group rate

Have your company cover your ticket

Most companies have a learning budget. Here's an email you can send today.

FAQ

Good questions.

Event details

Startup School Conference is a one day founder education flagship, co-produced by Rich Auntie Capital and the University of Denver's Daniels College of Business. Think of it as your One Day Startup MBA: a single day built around the real, tactical conversations founders need and rarely get in one room together, from raising capital to building a team to planning an exit.

Startup School Conference is built for revenue generating founders and operators, generally in the $200K to $40M range, along with University of Denver graduate students. If you are actively building and want a day of specific, practical guidance rather than conference platitudes, this is for you.

Yes. The sessions are built to meet founders where they actually are, whether this is your first company or your third. Expect real numbers and real mistakes discussed on stage, not polished takeaways.

Yes, and we'd encourage it. Several sessions, including our Raise Ready track and the Show Me the Exit mainstage panel, are built directly for founders navigating a raise or thinking ahead to an exit. Come ready to talk about where you are in the process.

Business casual. There is no formal dress code, but dress for a professional room.

Select mainstage sessions may be recorded for RAC's content and podcast. If you would prefer not to appear on camera, let our team know at check-in.

No. Startup School Conference is an in-person only event. There is no virtual or hybrid attendance option.

We offer a range of partnership opportunities built around the day, from stage moments to hosted experiences. Reach out to team@startupschoolconference.com to talk through what fits your goals.

Program

Our lineup features founders, operators, and investors who've done the work, not just talked about it. The full roster is in the Faculty section, and it continues to grow as we get closer to November 5.

VIP check-in starts at 8:45 AM, followed by The Founder Boardroom, presented by Eide Bailly. Premium and General Admission check-in is at 10:00 AM. The program opens at 11:00 AM and runs through an evening reception for every ticket that closes at 6:30 PM. In between: an opening mainstage block, a breakout round, a catered lunch (with a Lunch & Learn for Premium and VIP), a second breakout round, the Show Me the Exit mainstage panel, and a closing fireside chat with Natalie Holloway. The full curriculum is published on the Curriculum page; only room assignments are still to come.

Tickets

General Admission · $125

  • All mainstage sessions, including Show Me the Exit and the Natalie Holloway fireside
  • 2 breakout sessions, 1 per round
  • Catered lunch
  • The Startup School Workbook
  • Evening reception until 6:30 PM

Premium · $175

Everything in GA. The extra $50 gets you:

  • Lunch & Learn: Financing the Grey Area
  • Priority seating all day
  • Event swag

VIP · $350

Everything in Premium, plus:

  • The Founder Boardroom, presented by Eide Bailly: a VIP-only morning session at small tables with experts
  • VIP check-in at 8:45 AM
  • Included parking

Tickets are sold and managed through Humanitix. Once you complete checkout, your confirmation and e-ticket are sent to the email you registered with.

Early bird pricing has closed. Current pricing is $125 General Admission, $175 Premium, and $350 VIP.

Tickets are transferable. Email team@startupschoolconference.com for help.

Yes. DU graduate students can attend at no cost with a code provided by their professors. Pre-registration is required, student tickets are not available at the door.

Groups of 5 or more save 10 to 15 percent. Reach out to team@startupschoolconference.com to set up your group.

Travel & logistics

On the University of Denver main campus, in Denver, Colorado. The day runs across two buildings: Sturm Hall, 2040 S Race St, Denver, CO 80210, and Community Commons, a 3 minute walk away.

VIP tickets include parking. Everyone else can park in the campus lot for $14 per day. The University of Denver campus is served by RTD light rail, with the University of Denver station a short walk away.

There are 2 hotels near campus in Cherry Creek, about ten minutes away. Both are linked below.

Lunch is included with every ticket. You will have the chance to note dietary restrictions during registration.

Yes. If you need any accommodations to attend, reach out to team@startupschoolconference.com ahead of the event and our team will work with you directly.

Still deciding? Get my ticket.

It's time to change your business.

November 5 at the University of Denver. From $125.

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