Newswise — Babson College Professor Heidi Neck has been named President of the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship® (USASBE). The announcement was made at the association’s annual meeting in San Diego.

Neck serves as Babson’s Jeffry A. Timmons Professor of Entrepreneurial Studies, and as Faculty Director of the college’s Symposia for Entrepreneurship Educators (SEE)—programs designed to further develop faculty from around the world in the art and craft of teaching entrepreneurship and building entrepreneurship programs. Through her leadership, she has directly trained 2,000 educators from 48 countries.

At Babson, Neck has been recognized for her excellence in teaching, and has also received awards for pedagogy and course design from the Academy of Management and USASBE. She is the lead author of Teaching Entrepreneurship, the go-to book for entrepreneurship educators.

“We couldn’t be more excited about Heidi Neck being elected,” said Patrick Snyder, Executive Director of USASBE. “She has earned a tremendous reputation both nationally and internationally. News of her nomination was met by USASBE leadership with a resounding, ‘YES’! Her amazing grasp of soft skills and entrepreneurship education make her the perfect person to lead our board.”

“I am honored to have been elected by my colleagues to serve in this important role for an organization dedicated to the advancement of entrepreneurship education,” said Neck. “The progressive leadership of USASBE demonstrates a commitment to not only best practice but also future possibilities.”

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-owner of FlowDog, a canine aquatic fitness and rehabilitation center located just outside of Boston, and VentureBlocks, an emerging company in education technology space. Heidi earned her Ph.D. in Strategic Management and Entrepreneurship from the University of Colorado at Boulder. She holds a B.S. in Marketing from Louisiana State University and an MBA from the University of Colorado, Boulder. For more info, visit www.bit.ly/1Po91JQ

About USASBE

The United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship® (USASBE) is the largest independent, professional academic organization in the world dedicated to advancing the discipline of entrepreneurship. It has over 1,000 members from universities and colleges, for-profit businesses, nonprofit organizations, and the public sector. USASBE’s mission is to support the development of entrepreneurship educators, who will in turn create the next generation of entrepreneurs.

About Babson College

Babson College is the educator, convener, and thought leader for Entrepreneurship of All Kinds®. The top-ranked college for entrepreneurship education, Babson is a dynamic living and learning laboratory where students, faculty, and staff work together to address the real-world problems of business and society. We prepare the entrepreneurial leaders our world needs most: those with strong functional knowledge and the skills and vision to navigate change, accommodate ambiguity, surmount complexity, and motivate teams in a common purpose to make a difference in the world, and have an impact on organizations of all sizes and types. As we have for nearly a half-century, Babson continues to advance Entrepreneurial Thought and Action® as the most positive force on the planet for generating sustainable economic and social value. Visit www.babson.edu