New Faces, Old Friends, and a President’s First of Many Lasts: Move-In Day 2026 

Sue Alexopoulos P’30 and Peter Alexopoulos P’30 have been through this before.

While move-in day for first-year students often brings nervous excitement as families arrive on campus, unpack their cars, and begin to get settled in their new residence halls, the Alexopouloses were beaming confidently in their green Babson mom and dad T-shirts.

The two proud and enthusiastic parents were helping their youngest daughter, Isabella (Bella) Alexopoulos ’30, move in Thursday at Babson College. “This is our fourth kid, fourth college,” Sue said.

They’re well accustomed to the routine and emotions of move-in day, but even they enjoyed an unexpected treat when President Stephen Spinelli Jr. MBA’92, PhD approached them in the Nichols Lot. “I’ll shake the president’s hand and get a sticker,” Sue said.

The parents arrived from Longmeadow, Massachusetts, and immediately struck a connection with Spinelli, who also had lived in the Western Massachusetts town for 15 years. They compared addresses and acquaintances. It was a small-world moment.

“It’s pretty cool,” Peter said. “You can tell he likes what he does. He’s dialed in, welcoming, and confident. It feels good.”

“Words can’t express it,” Sue said of meeting the president on their daughter’s first day. “You go to other schools, that wouldn’t happen. The close-knit feeling that is here is priceless.”

Memories and Aspiration

Move-in day this year also was the first of many lasts for Spinelli, who recently announced his retirement after this academic year. The milestone gave him a moment of reflection as we walked the campus, greeting students and families on the beautiful, warm morning.

“I think each of the traditional punctuating events have a little more sensitivity and probably brings more lasting memory,” Spinelli said. “It is a reminder that you should be enjoying all moments, not just the last ones you have, but it does highlight the experience in a more punctuated way. Welcoming new students is part of the culture, so you think through and appreciate it.”

Spinelli was asked if he recalled his first day on campus as a part-time MBA student in 1985.

“Very much because I had Bill Bygrave, who was a hero,” he said of the legendary professor who is considered a co-founder of entrepreneurship at Babson. “That was my first class. I thought, wow, this is going to be unbelievable. And it was. Most of the professors were really good, but he was remarkable. I knew I was going to learn a lot, and I did.”

“It is a reminder that you should be enjoying all moments, not just the last ones you have, but it does highlight the experience in a more punctuated way.”

President Stephen Spinelli Jr. MBA’92, PhD

That first class began to set Spinelli on a new career path, from Jiffy Lube co-founder to higher education leader. Now, 41 years later, he was greeting first-year students in the Class of 2030.

Spinelli tossed T-shirts and passed out “Proud Babson College Parent” magnets to parents and Babson stickers to new students, stopping to chat with families unpacking their cars in the parking lots. He helped one family of four from New Jersey carry a huge yellow tote bag into a first-year student’s new room at Forest Hall. And he helped hustle a green rolling cart into Park Manor North.

“My favorite day of the year is graduation, but this is my second favorite day. When they come in, and when they go out,” Spinelli said. “You know why? Almost universally, everybody’s happy on the first day, and then graduation is excitement and aspiration. There’s also a lot of aspiration when the kids are coming in.”

‘Full-Circle’ Moment

Among the parents was a surprise for Spinelli. He met two former students of his while he was an entrepreneurship professor at Babson. Ben Seward MS’98, P’30 and Natalie Seward MS’00, P’30 arrived from Granite Bay, California, with their son, Tyler Seward ’30. “Full circle,” Natalie said.

Tyler will join Babson’s swimming and diving team, and his parents are hoping that Babson is as transformational for him as it was for them as graduate students.

“Babson was kind of life-changing for us in terms of thinking about academics,” Ben said. “We did the master’s program, so every professor, three at a time, sometimes four, knew exactly what the other professors were teaching. So, it was this integrated development program. Lots of heavy teamwork. It was really awesome. So we’re eager to see what it’s like now for undergraduate studies. Tyler came for a visit and was so taken by some of the classroom engagements that basically treated him exactly like a student in the class.”

Natalie said Spinelli was “a lot of fun” as a professor, and Ben recalled the enthusiasm of Spinelli and the other professors. “Having been in the real world and having experiences like Jiffy Lube and others, they’re not all theory. They’re practical and applied.”

‘Ready for Greatness’

Another punctuating moment for Spinelli came later in the afternoon, when he addressed new students and parents for a final time at the orientation opening ceremony at the Len Grean Recreation and Athletics Complex (LGRAC).

As he entered the recreation center before the ceremony, a group of three dozen Peer Mentors greeted him with cheers and a brief chant, “One more year! One more year!”

During the ceremony, students and families heard from campus leaders such as Brayden Cole ’27, president of the Student Government Association; Caitlin Capozzi, vice president for learner success and dean of campus life; and Poonam Arora, the new dean of the undergraduate school and a professor of management.

Arora, who joined Babson earlier this year, noted that the Class of 2030 is the first she gets to welcome at orientation. She marveled at the rich diversity of a class that represents 38 states, 55 countries, and 46 languages.

“I only speak five, so I hope those of you with the other 41 will stop by my office and teach me a phrase or two in your language that I would love to learn,” she said, “because we are all here at Babson eternal students.”

For Spinelli, this was his eighth incoming class of undergraduates. As he has since 2019, he reminded the first-year students not only of their achievement of arriving at Babson but also the impact their experiences will have on their development and their careers.

“Babson graduates are people who go out into the world and build something. They are action-oriented,” Spinelli said. “That is what Babson has always stood for. Babson creates entrepreneurial leaders who impact communities everywhere, and the data proves it. You are here because we see something special in you. Intelligence and achievement are important, but we also see grit, resilience, aspiration, and creativity. That’s more important.”

“Class of 2030,” he concluded, “you were admitted because you are wonderful. We believe you’re ready for greatness. Welcome to Babson.”

Check out more photos of President Spinelli and move-in day from Babson photographer Nic Czarnecki: