About Us
The Duree Center for Entrepreneurship (DCE) enjoys a rich legacy offering experiential and entrepreneurial learning opportunities for university students and company founders. In 2020, Lindenwood University acquired the Innovation and Technology and Entrepreneur Network (ITEN), which itself was founded in 2008. ITEN helped tech entrepreneurs launch successful new business ventures by offering educational programs and services, all without requiring equity participation. Throughout its history, ITEN assisted hundreds of startups whose companies created over a thousand jobs and raised millions of dollars.
The DCE will continue its focus on collaborative partnerships with other Entrepreneur Support Organizations (ESO) and economic development organizations to offer customized programs and services meeting the needs of the local, regional, and statewide entrepreneurial ecosystem. Other DCE initiatives will focus on non-profit entrepreneurship, secondary ed entrepreneurship, and instruction in the art of innovation.
Founding
The Center was established with a generous gift from Rick Duree, Lindenwood alum and dynamic member of the St. Charles business community.
Strategic Plan Support
The DCE supports the university's strategic plan:
Strategy 1.1 - Integration of entrepreneurial methodologies into business school curriculum.
Strategy 1.3 - Providing opportunities for students to participate in competitions.
Strategy 3.1 - Host on campus events for secondary school students. Serve on chamber of commerce boards and non-profit organizations.
Strategy 3.2 - Develop non-profit entrepreneurship and secondary school programs leading to certification opportunities. Develop revenue-bearing programs with outside companies.
Meet The Team
Ben Brink - Adjunct Professor
Ben Brink has over 40 years of experience in the leadership of high technology companies, venture capital, and corporate partnering—in Silicon Valley, Southern California, and the Midwest, with extensive global experience and operations in Europe and Asia.
He holds degrees from: Harvard Business School, MBA; Stanford University, MS (Operations Research) and BS (Mathematics); and US Army War College, MS (Strategic Studies). He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Technology degree at Purdue University, West Lafayette.
Melissa Brown - Business Manager
Melissa, a dedicated educator with Bachelor's and Master's degrees in education, began her career as a public school teacher for the City of St. Charles School District. She transitioned to key operational roles in higher education and entrepreneurial settings, where her innate understanding of classrooms allowed her to infuse empathy into her leadership style, build enduring relationships and become a trusted advisor. As a Regional Director of Education Operations, she consistently delivered outstanding student-centered results and excelled in accreditation with three local career education colleges. Outside work, Melissa is a proud mother to her son who attends St. Charles High, enjoys 5K runs, travels with friends, and passionately supports the Kansas City Chiefs. Born in San Diego, CA, Melissa has called St. Charles “home” for the past 25 years.
Alex Elias - Entrepreneur In Residence
Alex Elias is a dynamic entrepreneur, executive leader, and consultant. He has driven several exits and numerous raises across various sectors. His efforts have spanned from start-ups to large corporations/organizations with a focus in sales, marketing, advertising, technology, software development, strategy, operations, manufacturing, sourcing, logistics, fundraising/capital raising, real estate, healthcare, education, emerging technologies, among other disciplines.
Jeff Nock - Entrepreneur In Residence
Jeff is passionate about helping startup, early-stage, and small to mid-cap companies achieve their goals. He's worked with over 400+ companies in the past three years and helped many of them achieve milestones such as successful exits, acquisitions, raising capital, strategic planning, branding/marketing, sales strategy and execution, project management, product development and most importantly, establishing and fostering positive company culture.
He has thirty years of leadership experience from CEO (twice) to startup entrepreneur (six startups), yielding a broad background from which to help company founders achieve their potential. Jeff has enjoyed two successful company exits and was part of a startup team that raised $127m in venture capital. He's also served as CEO during the acquisition of multiple companies.
The list of industries in which he's had experience is broad:
- Business intelligence (BI)
- Cybersecurity
- Software development
- Healthcare & medical device
- Retail
- Hospitality
- Finance
- Educational Technology
- E-Commerce
- Non-profits
Other skillset include experience with EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System), the Business Model Canvas, Agile Development, and methodologies that help companies scale.
Ultimately, Jeff enjoys working with business owners and their teams to customize the best way forward to scale their growth.
Pravina Pindoria - Entrepreneur In Residence
As co-founder of Tallyfy, Pravina helped raise $2.6m in seed funding from investors in St. Louis and Silicon Valley and went through accelerators 500 Startups and Alchemist in San Francisco. 
Pravina has deep experience of UX, product management and scaling a tech startup with a remote workforce. Through Tallyfy, Pravina has consulted and helped other tech-enabled companies unlock further economic efficiencies and scale their operations. Pravina is currently serving on the Board of Directors at Saint Louis Zoo.
Prior to Tallyfy, Pravina spent 10+ years as a pediatric intensive care nurse with the NHS in England, setting up intensive care units in rural Africa and carrying out international clinical research trials in Australia.
