Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center launches Northwest Arkansas program to help small businesses grow and connect students to paid internships

Over two years, the program gives early-stage founders mentorship and coaching while placing local college students in paid internships at area startups

PALO ALTO, Calif., Aug. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center, a non-profit, today announced the launch of a first-of-its-kind initiative in Northwest Arkansas that pilots a single model to address two challenges at once: giving early-stage small businesses the mentorship and coaching they need to grow, while helping local college students start their careers through paid internships at those businesses. The two-year program is delivered in partnership with the University of Arkansas Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation and Northwest Arkansas Community College (NWACC).

Supported by the Walton Family Foundation, the initiative is designed to build a new model that regions across the country can adapt to convert local entrepreneurial energy into lasting economic growth. Support for this work is foundational to Northwest Arkansas's continued success as a national leader in innovation and entrepreneurship. The Wells Fargo Foundation provides additional support for the initiative.

Early-stage companies often lack access to the networks and knowledge they need to scale. At the same time, many students at the region's colleges have limited access to clear pathways into the innovation economy. These two gaps exist side by side, and each reinforces the other.

The initiative is the first time the Center has brought together two programs it has run separately: Milestone Circles, which provides structured coaching and learning within peer cohorts; and Startup Intern Match, a paid internship placement program connecting university students with early-stage startups.

Startups entering the program are enrolled concurrently in Milestone Circles and Startup Intern Match, giving them onboarding frameworks and coaching before their interns arrive so they can make the most of the incoming talent. Across the grant period, the program will support four early-stage founder cohorts totaling 70 startups and place 140 students in paid internships.

Applications are open on a rolling basis and can be submitted at https://nasdaqcenter.org/milestone-circles-ar/#apply.

Milestone Circles in Northwest Arkansas

A CEO peer-cohort program that brings together early-stage founders for structured coaching, peer accountability, and shared learning. Four cohorts will run over two years, supporting 70 early-stage startups, with up to 16 in-person sessions per cohort, including onboarding, accountability sessions, and a graduation. Projected outcomes across the grant period include an average revenue increase of at least 10% among revenue-generating participants, a combined minimum of $500,000 in new capital raised, and at least 30 new jobs created.

The program is part of the Center's national Milestone Circles initiative, which has graduated 8,381 founders across 17,839 applications to date. In 2025 alone, the program delivered 5,267 hours of technical assistance across 238 program experiences, and enrollment is expected to surpass 9,000 participants in 2026.

Startup Intern Match in Northwest Arkansas

A paid internship placement program connecting University of Arkansas and NWACC students with early-stage startups across four cohorts over two years, led on the student side by the University of Arkansas Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Students are compensated at $15 per hour for 10 hours per week over 12-week placements. Startups entering the program are enrolled concurrently in Milestone Circles, giving them onboarding frameworks and coaching before interns arrive. Across the grant period, 140 students will be placed.

The Center brings a proven track record in student placement. Most recently, working with Lehigh University, the Center placed 80 to 120 students per semester in startup internships. Demand is substantial, with more than 4,150 startups requesting interns to date, exceeding current program capacity by 32 times.

Both programs close with a joint graduation and Nasdaq Tower recognition in Times Square. Local advisor Matt Waller, former dean of the University of Arkansas Sam M. Walton College of Business, provides regional credibility and on-the-ground relationship support, and facilitates Milestone Circles NWA.

Quotes

"Northwest Arkansas is a hub of innovation and entrepreneurial energy, and we are proud to partner with the Walton Family Foundation to fuel that momentum," said Nicola Corzine, CEO and Founding Executive Director of the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center. "Milestone Circles and Startup Intern Match will create real, lasting connections between students and startups, between founders and mentors, and between the Center and the Northwest Arkansas community."

"Through the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, we are committed to immersive learning that connects students with real-world challenges, founders, and emerging companies," said Brent Williams, dean of the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas. "We are pleased to partner with the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center and Northwest Arkansas Community College on Startup Intern Match, an initiative that expands access to startup experiences while strengthening the talent pipeline across our region."

"This partnership connects classroom learning with paid, real-world experience at startups across Northwest Arkansas, helping students build the skills and professional networks they need for strong careers," said Dr. Chris LaFata, dean of Business and Computer Information Systems at Northwest Arkansas Community College.

"Northwest Arkansas has no shortage of ambitious founders. What they often lack is a room of peers who will ask the hard questions and hold them accountable. That is what Milestone Circles provides," said Matt Waller, professor at the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas and facilitator of Milestone Circles NWA.

"Entrepreneurship can be a lonely journey," said Yee-Lin Lai, senior program officer for the Walton Family Foundation's Home Region Program. "Milestone Circles will connect Northwest Arkansas founders with peers and mentors who can help them navigate challenges and grow, while startup internships will give students hands-on experience and help build the region's next generation of entrepreneurial talent."

About the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center

The Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center is a non-profit committed to growing access and resources for entrepreneurs. Since 2015, the Center has served more than 140,000 entrepreneurs worldwide, meeting the real-time needs of founders through educational programming and advancing entrepreneurial opportunity by sharing insights with policy leaders, capital allocators, and academic partners.

About the Walton Family Foundation

The Walton Family Foundation is at its core, a family-led foundation. Three generations of the descendants of our founders, Sam and Helen Walton, and their spouses, work together to lead the foundation and create access to opportunities for people and communities. We work in three areas: improving education, protecting rivers and oceans and the communities they support, and investing in our home region of Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta. To learn more, visit waltonfamilyfoundation.org.

About the Milestone Circles NWA facilitator

Matt Waller is a Professor of Supply Chain Management at the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, where he holds the William Dillard II Endowed Leadership Chair. He served as dean of the college for eight years before returning to full-time faculty in 2023. He co-founded Mercari Technologies, one of Arkansas's first venture-backed companies, and advises early-stage founders across Northwest Arkansas. He facilitates Milestone Circles NWA.

Media contact

Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center

[email protected] 

SOURCE Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center