Babson Academy Team

Amir Reza is the dean of the Babson Academy for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurial Learning (Babson Academy), a dedicated unit within Babson College that inspires change in the way universities, specifically their faculty and students, teach and learn entrepreneurship. In this role, he is responsible for leading and for the collaborative advancement of Babson Academy’s strategy. He also is dean of Global Education, responsible for advancing overall internationalization efforts for Babson College through curricular and cocurricular programs.

Reza formerly was vice provost for International & Multicultural Education at Babson College. His leadership efforts in internationalization of Babson College were recognized through the prestigious Senator Paul Simon Comprehensive Internationalization Award, and Forbes ranking Babson as the best school for international students in the U.S. He has held numerous positions in academic affairs, student affairs, and international education during the past 21 years at Babson.

Reza has served on regional leadership boards for NAFSA: Association of International Educators, and has presented at numerous national and international conferences on international education. He chaired the Editorial Committee of the Association of International Education Administrators. He also has served on the international advisory board of Tongji University, Shanghai, China, and CIEE Entrepreneurship Lab in Berlin, Germany. In addition, he has provided consulting on pedagogy and curriculum development in international higher education at a number of institutions.

Reza’s areas of expertise include international education, global competency, higher education administration, and global entrepreneurship education. His research focus is on learning outcomes of higher education internationalization, intercultural development, and educating entrepreneurial leaders with a global mindset.

Heidi Neck is a Babson College professor and the Jeffry A. Timmons Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies. She is the academic director of the Babson Academy for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurial Learning, a dedicated unit within Babson that inspires change in the way universities, specifically their faculty and students, teach and learn entrepreneurship. The Babson Academy builds on Neck’s work starting the Babson Collaborative, a global institutional membership organization for colleges and universities seeking to increase their capability and capacity in entrepreneurship education, and her leadership of Babson’s Symposia for Entrepreneurship Educators (SEE), programs designed to further develop faculty from around the world in the of art and craft of teaching entrepreneurship and building entrepreneurship programs. Through her leadership, she has directly trained more than 2,200 educators around the world.

She has taught entrepreneurship at the undergraduate, MBA, and executive levels. Neck is the immediate past president of the United States Association of Small Business & Entrepreneurship (USASBE), an academic organization dedicated to the advancement of entrepreneurship education. She is the faculty director of the Babson Collaborative, a global institutional membership organization for colleges and universities seeking to increase their capability and capacity in entrepreneurship education. Additionally, Neck is faculty director of Babson’s Symposia for Entrepreneurship Educators (SEE).

Her research interests include entrepreneurship education, the entrepreneurial mindset, and entrepreneurship inside organizations. An award-winning educator and author, her textbook Entrepreneurship: The Practice and Mindset (2017) was awarded the Breakthrough Book of 2017 by Sage Publishing and the 2018 Most Promising New Textbook Award by the Textbook & Academic Authors Association (TAA). Neck is the lead author of Teaching Entrepreneurship: A Practice-Based Approach (Elgar Publishing), a book written to help educators teach entrepreneurship in more experiential and engaging ways. Her latest book, The IDEATE Method, guides students through an ideation technique empirically proven to help novice entrepreneurs generate high-potential new venture ideas. Additionally, she has published more than 45 book chapters, research monographs, and refereed articles.

Neck has been recognized for teaching excellence at Babson for undergraduate, graduate, and executive education. She also has been recognized by international organizations, the Academy of Management and USASBE, for excellence in pedagogy and course design. For pushing the frontiers of entrepreneurship education in higher education, The Schulze Foundation and the Entrepreneur and Innovation Exchange (EIX) named her “Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year” for 2016.

Neck speaks and teaches internationally on cultivating the entrepreneurial mindset and espousing the positive force of entrepreneurship as a societal change agent. She consults and trains organizations of all sizes on building entrepreneurial capacity. She is the co-founder of VentureBlocks, an entrepreneurship education technology company and achieved a successful exit with FlowDog, a canine aquatic fitness and rehabilitation center located just outside of Boston. She also serves on the board of the 100 percent family-owned, seventh-generation, land-management company in Louisiana, A. Wilbert’s & Sons. Neck earned her PhD in strategic management and entrepreneurship from the University of Colorado Boulder, her BS in marketing from Louisiana State University, and her MBA from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Lily Awad is the Director of Business Development for the Babson Academy. In this role she leverages her extensive experience as both an educator and relationship manager to drive impactful collaborations with stakeholders.

Lily is passionate about partnering with institutions to expand their entrepreneurship education programs. She is energized by the dynamic nature of today’s workplace and how institutions are using entrepreneurial methods to prepare the next generation of professionals.

Prior to joining the Academy in 2024, Lily worked at Babson’s F.W. Olin School of Business, where she collaborated with corporate stakeholders on recruitment strategies for hiring graduate students. She also coached graduate students on their career paths and designed and taught courses rooted in Babson's Entrepreneurial Thought & Action® (ET&A) methodology.

Lily’s professional journey also includes contributions to international education. While at Northeastern University, Lily oversaw the growth of the international co-operative education program across Europe, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and Asia.

Lily holds a Doctorate of Education from Northeastern University, a Master of Arts in Middle East Studies from the American University of Beirut, and a Bachelor’s Degree in International Affairs from Northeastern University.

Jennie is responsible for Babson Collaborative operations, communications, and coordination of programs, including the global student challenge, global summit, student network, webinars and activities throughout the year. Jennie maintains databases and member engagement platforms such as the member portal, and dynamic WhatsApp community. She supports institutional champions and their communities, ensuring excellent customer service and increased member engagement.

Prior to joining Babson in 2023, Jennie served as director of membership at a non-profit human service and wellness organization. She has 20 years’ experience in customer success and international VIP & corporate event planning.

Jennie earned her B.A. from the University of New Hampshire in Cultural Anthropology with a minor in Italian Studies. She also has thirteen years’ experience as a yoga instructor.

As associate dean of the Babson Academy, Carrie Boyd ’98, MBA’06 plays a lead role in establishing and advancing long- and short-term strategies for the Babson Academy’s growth. In addition to overseeing the day-to-day operations, she focuses on new product development and innovation across the portfolio of products and audiences.

She has focused her career on working with academic institutions in their quest to elevate the art and science of teaching entrepreneurship. She joined the Babson College Executive Education team in 2003 and was tapped to help launch the Babson Academy in early 2019. She earned her bachelor and MBA degrees from Babson College. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends.

As Senior Director, Nan Covert drives collaboration in the university and K-12 markets by identifying and executing on new business opportunities in line with Babson Academy’s goal of bringing Babson's methodology of Entrepreneurial Thought & Action® and entrepreneurship education to the world. She builds relationships and works with stakeholders at educational institutions, foundations, banks, and other organizations in the Americas and Europe. Nan also leads the team responsible for supporting Babson Academy’s marketing efforts via lead qualification and conversion.

After joining Babson in 2010, she was part of Babson Executive Education’s program delivery team for six years before shifting to a business development focus and helping to launch the Babson Academy in early 2019. Nan is also deeply involved with Babson’s Venturing Out Prison Education Initiative which has grown in her two-year tenure from a small pilot to a NECHE-accredited “Certificate in Humanities and Entrepreneurship: Transforming Self to Entrepreneurial Leader” at the Massachusetts Correctional Institution, Framingham, MA.

Prior to Babson, Nan managed U.S. marketing efforts for an international publisher’s medical product line, helped build a new Boston-based division of the world’s largest specialized talent solutions and business consulting firm, and worked as a freelance copywriter and editor. She holds a BA from Middlebury College.

As Coordinator, Business Development, Michelle helps drive participation in Babson Academy’s open enrollment programs and identifies opportunities for collaboration by serving as the first point of contact for inbound inquiries. In this role, she leverages her knowledge of Babson Academy’s programs, as well as her background in education and advising, to assess prospects’ needs and goals and identify next steps in the Babson Academy learning journey.

Prior to this role, Michelle served as a Program Coordinator supporting Babson Academy’s summer university student programming, where she worked directly with students, Babson faculty, and other campus stakeholders to ensure smooth and successful program delivery. Michelle earned her BA in Education from New York University with a concentration in Global and Urban Education.

Senior Director of Academic Strategy, Youth Impact Lab

Areas of Expertise: Role entrepreneurship educators play in helping their students develop confidence, a growth mindset, and entrepreneurial grit, entrepreneurship, marketing

As Senior Director, Jamie is responsible for the overall strategy, development, implementation and oversight of the Babson Collaborative and the Youth Impact Lab. He leads the teams to focus on engagement with universities, secondary schools, educators, and learners to grow global prospects aimed at growth and impact.

Before joining the Babson Academy in 2019, Jamie was Babson’s director of international student and scholar services and director of multicultural education.

Prior to joining Babson in 2010, he worked in international student services at Brown University and Marietta College. He earned his MA in education and BA in public relations/advertising from Marietta College in Ohio.

As Program Administrator, Jessika is responsible for planning, execution and evaluation of Youth Impact Lab programs, most notably our educator training certificate programs, EPIC curriculum licenses, and the annual Summer Study program for high school students.

Before joining Babson, Jessika held supporting roles in development, programming, and outreach, and has been responsible for stewarding relationships with community partners in the nonprofit sector.

Prior to that, Jessika taught as an AmeriCorps Teaching Fellow in New Bedford and a substitute teacher in Boston. In her free time, Jessika likes to do yoga, enjoys all forms of art, and writes poetry!

As Operations Coordinator, Bianca provides daily support to the Babson Academy, conducts process analysis, handles financial tasks, and actively contributes to various programs and projects. With nearly two decades of experience in project and program management for both non-profits and IT firms, she brings a wealth of expertise to the team.

Bianca joined the Babson Academy team in February 2023 as a temporary Program Coordinator, where she played a pivotal role in ensuring the successful delivery of the 2023 Babson Build program. She transitioned to a full-time position as the Operations Coordinator in August 2023.

Bianca is a proud graduate of Long Island University and is passionate about music, thrift shopping, and cherishes quality family time.

Li Tan, Program Specialist, supports the Dean of Global Education in advancing Babson’s global initiatives through strategic program management, high-impact educational experiences, and international engagement. He began his career at Babson College as an Administrative Assistant in the Glavin Office of International Education.

Prior to Babson, Li Tan worked at Oliver Ames High School in Easton, MA specializing in academic support to students with learning disabilities and English language learners. Back in China, Li worked as an account executive in a PR agency providing communication strategies for FAW TOYOTA.

Li Tan served as Student Ambassador during his study at FLS International in Boston before he permanently moved to the US.  He earned his Bachelor degree in Culture and Communications from The University of International Relations in Beijing, China.

Outside of work, Li Tan has a wide range of interests in retirement planning, photography, and Spartan racing.