Assistant Professor of Finance Honored with the Babson Kennedy Award for Teaching

Listen
Headshot of Luke Stein
Luke Stein, assistant professor of finance

Assistant Professor of Finance Luke Stein has been named the 2022 winner of the prestigious Thomas Kennedy Award for Teaching Excellence, which is awarded to a graduate professor nominated by a graduating student and voted upon by the graduating class.

Stein began teaching at Babson College in 2020 and has taught in the full-time MBA, part-time MBA, Miami MBA, Master of Science in Management in Entrepreneurial Leadership (MSEL), and Master of Science in Finance (MSF) programs. Stein enjoys teaching graduate students and helping them succeed, whether they want to work in the finance industry or apply core financial tools to entrepreneurial ventures.

He earned his PhD in economics from Stanford University and his AB in applied mathematics with a citation in Japanese Language from Harvard University. Prior to joining Babson, Stein taught finance and economics courses at the high school through PhD levels at Stanford and Arizona State University. His commitment to students has been widely awarded, including Stanfords Gores Award, the university’s highest award for excellence in teaching. Stein also is a recognized leader in helping college faculty around the world implement technological solutions for effectively teaching from home.

His main research interests lie at the intersection of corporate finance and labor economics, including work on financial history, entrepreneurial finance, financial uncertainty, and the economics of discrimination. He has published peer-reviewed papers in The Review of Financial Studies, Journal of Corporate Finance, and The Economic Journal.

Stein worked in New York and Tokyo as a consultant on corporate strategy and private equity due diligence with Bain & Company. He also served on the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition Team, and in the Office of Strategic Initiatives at the New York City Department of Education.

The Kennedy Award finalists this year included professors Nathaniel Karst, Anirudh Dhebar, Babak Zafari, and Ruben Mancha.

Posted in Babson Briefs

More from Babson Briefs »

Latest Stories

Male college student meets with campus counselor
Here’s How Colleges Can Better Support Students’ Well-Being to Improve Their Success College students are reporting lower rates of depressive symptoms and anxiety for the third year in a row, but the mental health crisis is far from over, writes Babson College’s Ryan Travia for The Conversation.
By
December 10, 2025

Posted in Insights

Chicken sandwich
The Rise of Chicken, the Decline of Pizza Hut, and Other Franchising Trends Ab Igram MBA’96, of Babson’s Tariq Farid Franchise Institute, surveys the state of franchising. From the familiar names to the up-and-coming ventures, he talks chicken, sandwiches, and, uh, pet waste scooping.
By
John Crawford
Senior Journalist
John Crawford
A writer for Babson Thought & Action and the Babson Magazine, John Crawford has been telling the College’s entrepreneurial story for more than 15 years. Assignments for Babson have taken him from Rwanda to El Salvador, from the sweet-smelling factory of a Pennsylvania candy maker, to the stately Atlanta headquarters of an NFL owner, to the bustling office of a New York City fashion designer. Beyond his work for Babson, he has written articles and essays for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Notre Dame Magazine, The Good Men Project, and other publications. He can be found on Twitter, @crawfordwriter, where he tweets about climate change.
December 9, 2025

Posted in Insights

The Retailing Management course with Jaylen Brown and Joel Kamm MBA’12 outside their pop-up event.
Hands-On, All-In: Babson’s Retailing Management Students Create Unforgettable Pop-Up Experience The Retailing Management class, composed of mostly fourth-year students, brought experiential learning to life, executing a campus pop-up event with Jaylen Brown’s 741 Performance brand, culminating in all they’ve learned at Babson.
By
Melissa Savignano
Writer
Melissa Savignano
Melissa Savignano, a content marketing manager at Babson College, has worked in higher education for almost a decade, where she tells authentic, compelling campus and community stories. Before Babson, she managed communications for Boston University’s largest college, the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences. She previously worked in client relations, helping brands of various sizes launch content marketing strategies and storytelling initiatives. When not at work, you will find her in the city of Boston, probably at the movie theater.
December 8, 2025

Posted in Community, Entrepreneurial Leadership