Steven F. Tello

Steven F. Tello is a tenured Professor at the Manning School of Business, University of Massachusetts Lowell, where he founded the undergraduate entrepreneurship program and the interdisciplinary Master of Science in Innovation and Technological Entrepreneurship.

Education:

• Ed. D., Leadership in Schooling, University of Massachusetts Lowell
• M.B.A., Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts Amherst
• M. Ed., Management & Administration, Cambridge College
• B. A., Sociology, University of Lowell

His research spans technology innovation, business incubation, student entrepreneurship, and technology-facilitated management education, with publications in prestigious business journals reflecting interdisciplinary approaches to entrepreneurial ecosystems and educational technology.

Professor Tello secured over $7 million in foundation, federal, and state grant funding to advance campus educational initiatives and economic development programs. He actively mentors students through entrepreneurship programs he established, fostering innovation pipelines from classroom to commercialization.

Key leadership roles include Vice Provost for Graduate, Online and Professional Studies, where he restructured graduate admissions and online programming during the pandemic era, and Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Entrepreneurship and Economic Development. His career began in 1996 in Continuing Education, pioneering UMass Lowell's online education platform.

Tello drove growth in major initiatives including the Massachusetts Medical Device Development Center (M2D2), Innovation Hub business incubators, DifferenceMaker student program, River Hawk Venture Fund, and Deshpande Symposium. He currently teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in innovation, entrepreneurship, and technology commercialization principles.