Few of the thousands of shoppers at Sacramento’s Sunday farmers market at 8th and W streets ever look up at the gray concrete ceiling looming above them. But by next spring, it may be tough to look at anything else.

Seventy percent of colleges now say online education drives their long-term growth strategies. And, where for-profit universities once dominated online MBA programs, now highly rated business schools like Kelley and the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School offer them.

In civic and business circles, we often hear the lament that Sacramento has never been a corporate headquarters. Many believe this hampers our ability to fully prosper and grow. But, in addition to the attractive traits Sacramento does possess, it has a powerful economic catalyst in its backyard: a top-10 public research university that can be the lifeblood of a stronger, deeper and more resilient regional economy.

Pete Eckert envisioned himself as an architect, but a degenerative eye disease derailed his plan. He instead pursued his MBA and photography and now sells his art worldwide.