Students Select 2025 Undergraduate Instructors and Staff of the Year

Six extraordinary instructors and five outstanding staff members have been selected, by undergraduate students, as the 2025 recipients of the school’s Undergraduate Instructor of the Year and Staff of the Year awards.

Following undergraduate student nominations, a committee of three students, one staff member, and the associate dean of the Undergraduate Program selected the following winners. For each, select quotes from nominators are included.

Instructors of the Year

 Vivek Balraj Ajmani, Senior Lecturer, Information and Decision Sciences

"Vivek is extremely passionate about business analytics and the overall well-being and achievement of his students. He truly wants us to all succeed not only in the classroom but also in the real world and whatever we decide to pursue in the future. I admire his ability to combine teaching but also humor to make the class enjoyable."

"He is extremely helpful and compassionate. He takes complex subjects and makes them extremely easy to understand. He truly cares about his students and their performance."

Adib Birkland, Senior Lecturer, Work and Organizations

"Adib does a great job of bringing his lectures to life with enthusiasm and relevant story telling. Always makes sure his students are engaged and is always very helpful."

"He is one of the best professors that I have had, knowing how to convey the material engagingly as well as encouraging participation to students effectively. Overall, he is a well-rounded professor, and I've always enjoyed attending his class."

John Heater, Assistant Professor, Accounting

"He really cares about the success of his students. He is able to show this by involving every student in his interactive lectures and shows great sense of humor and energy during his lectures."

"I think John has done such a great job making Accounting so digestible and making the lectures so engaging. He really pushes the class and makes it fun enough for me to want to go to accounting class."

Tammy Naples, Senior Lecturer, Accounting

"Tammy can flat out teach accounting. The thing I love about her class is she tells us what stuff is relevant for real world accounting and what stuff is just fluff. She is very approachable and eager to help out when we get stuck on something. The best accounting professor at the school!"

"Tammy made the class a joy to go to. She was always engaging with the class and giving examples so the students understood the subject matter better."

Corey Nelson, Senior Lecturer, Marketing

"By far one of the most hard-working and motivating professors I have had so far here at Carlson. I can tell how much he truly cares for his students and for what he is teaching. He always has an amazing attitude every time we walk into class, he is understanding, and he has given me personally an amazing opportunity that landed me an internship!"

"I have always felt valued in his class and he looks for student input at all times. He also is such an engaging lecturer that I never realised the class was done until it is. 10/10 instructor."

Lisa Novack, Design Your Life & Design Your Career Instructor, Director of Student Life & Career Design

"She is such an incredible teacher and really makes sure everyone in the class is involved. I have her for Design your Career in a Global Context and the information she provides to us and the care she has for all her students is amazing."

"Lisa has been so welcoming during my first year at Carlson and has really shown interest in my personal growth and development. I took Design Your Life with her in the fall and had such a great experience that I decided to take Design Your Career in a Global Context with her and travel to London!"

Staff of the Year

Mattia Beghelli, Senior Academic Advisor

"Mattia has been especially helpful as an advisor, ensuring that I can meet all of my educational goals in a timely manner. I always walk away from my advising meetings feeling as though he has provided me with many valuable insights and that he truly cares about my academic journey at Carlson."

"Mattia shows great care for his students. When we traveled abroad, he always made sure we knew that he was a great resource to go if we needed anything from talking to needing resources for the trip. That really showed his dedication to his students and making sure he could help them out whenever they needed it."

Caroline Quinn Fails, Student Life & Career Coach

"Caroline is such a great help to all of the clubs here at CSOM. She is actively involved and a great person to come to when needing help. She really is the backbone of extracurricular activities at CSOM."

"In all of her roles, Caroline is incredibly hardworking and supportive. She makes sure that students are thriving and going above and beyond. She makes sure that students have the resources necessary to achieve their goals."

Britney N. Hayes, Senior Student Life & Career Coach

"Britney connected me with "Dress for Success," which gave me the confidence to start my internship off on the right foot with a new professional wardrobe. Britney really cares about the success of her students and is very personable and kind!"

"I have had multiple career coaching appointments with her and I feel that she really gave me clarity as to what I should do. I always left her meetings feeling like a weight was lifted off of my shoulders."

Angie Murray, Assistant Director of Transition & Retention Initiatives

"Angie has been a great resource for first-gen students and has always been very supportive. Her work in the Carlson THRIVE program has allowed me to have many new experiences, such as joining case competitions and networking."

"Angie is a hard working and dedicated individual. She has contributed a lot to the community at Carlson by joining together people of color as a friend and a mentor."

Jacob Osterman, Enrollment & Transition Advisor

"When I was rejected from Carlson for Fall 2024, I emailed Jacob requesting to meet about my application. He was very accommodating and insightful about what I needed to do to better my chances of getting in. I focused on my grades and getting involved in the community, and was accepted for Spring 2025. Without that meeting, I don't think I would have gotten in."

"Jacob helped me out immensely even when I wasn't even accepted yet. He put in full effort to help me create a timeline of classes!"