FEATURE FRIDAY: Maria Wojtczak on DrivingMBA, Simulators, and Road Trip Playlists

Maria Wojtczak

Owner, DrivingMBA

www.drivingmba.com

For this week’s Feature Friday, we sat down with Maria Wojtczak of DrivingMBA. Wojtczak moved to Arizona with her husband, Rich, and daughter, Nicole, in 1998 from Michigan. She had worked for Ford Motor Co. for nine years, launching her career in organization development. In 1987 she decided to go out on her own, and an independent consultant in both Michigan and here in Arizona. Then, in 2003, she and Rich opened DrivingMBA, a driving school that uses a mix of classroom, simulation labs, and on-road instruction to provide the utmost in driver training and safety.

The couple ran DrivingMBA together until Rich retired in 2022. Today, Maria runs the company.

Here we speak with her about the school, safety, road trip playlists, and more.

What inspired to you start a driving school?

In 2002-2003, there were quite a few fatal teen car crashes. My husband, Rich, started researching what was being done for driver training and found it was sorely lacking, so we began the journey of developing a driving school that incorporated simulation technology.

You’re the only simulator-based driving school in the U.S. Why do you feel those are important?

Utilizing driving simulators to train drivers is the same concept as using flight simulators to teach pilots how to pilot a plane.

In our driving fundamentals simulation lab, students begin developing skills in a safe and controlled environment. Once they complete their lessons in that lab, we begin the process of transferring those skills to the real world. In our defensive driving simulation lab, we expose drivers to all types of hazardous situations, such as head-on collision, tire blow-out at high speed, distracted driving, weather conditions, and much more. They can make mistakes and we can replay and ask the question, “what could you have done differently?” They learn from those mistakes through experience in a safe and controlled environment. You can’t do that on the road.

A teen practices driving using a DrivingMBA simulator. Courtesy Driving MBA

What qualifications do your teachers have?

We look for individuals who either have a teaching background or a propensity for teaching. We do extensive training with our instructors at the time of hire, and we continue the process of professional development throughout their tenure with DrivingMBA.

We have an expertise in working with neuro-divergent students.

Part of the professional development for our instructors is to teach them how to work with all types of learners who exhibit all types of characteristics and behaviors.

We also have specialists with an expertise in working with neuro-divergent students on staff to support our instructors.

What type of students do you typically work with—teens, adults, seniors?

We work with a lot of teen or young adult novice drivers who are both neuro-typical and neuro-divergent learners. We have an assessment for seniors who need to have their driving skills evaluated, where we provide a recommendation based on their performance. We also have programs for experienced drivers, particularly companies that have individuals that drive as part of their job. This type of training for companies can save them a lot of money.

What are the services for people with special needs or learning differences?

We have an assessment to evaluate whether it is the appropriate time for an individual to begin the process to learn to drive. We train our instructors to work with neuro-divergent students and provide them tools and techniques to provide the necessary environment and support for those students.

One thing you wish drivers on the road—any drivers—would get better at?

Take driving seriously, PAY ATTENTION, drive with intention, and be respectful. Properly use the technology in your vehicles as an assist, as it was intended.

What’s your go-to road trip playlist or song?

I love pop, indie-pop, country, artists like Ed Sheeran, John Legend, Forest Blakk, Pink, and Celine Dion.

If you could take any celebrity out for a driving lesson, who would it be — and why?

I honestly don’t know. Anyone who could help me get the word out about how important it is to take the time to properly prepare a novice driver for the responsibility of driving.

Your favorite car?

I’m from a Ford family. I loved the older Ford Mustangs.

You like to relax by …

Being by water—in the pool, on the beach, kayaking on a lake or river, or dipping my feet in a creek.

Favorite places around Scottsdale?

Walking around Kierland and the Quarter. Downtown around the Civic Center.

Maria, Rich, and Nicole Wojtczak. Courtesy Maria Wojtczak