Syracuse University

IVMF leadership to speak on SU's longstanding commitment to vets and military families in D.C.

Jaime Winne Alvarez
(315) 443-3834

Mike Haynie, executive director of the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) at Syracuse University; SU alumnus Ken Quaglio G’91, principal at Ernst and Young; and graduates of the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV) program will speak to SU alumni and interested stakeholders about the University’s longstanding commitment to the veteran and military family communities at an event in Washington, D.C.

The event will take place on Monday, Oct. 3, beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Mayflower Hotel, 1127 Connecticut Ave., NW. A question-and-answer session will follow. To attend, register here, or contact SU in DC at (202) 797-4678.

James Schmeling, IVMF managing director, and Ray Toenniessen, IVMF director of operations and development, will join Haynie. All three are veterans of military service. They lead the IVMF, support its mission and promote opportunities for engagement with SU students, faculty, staff and alumni.

SU’s historic commitment to veterans and military families began during the post-World War II era and continues today. Following World War II, SU Chancellor William Pearson Tolley doubled campus enrollment by offering vets a world-class institution at which to use GI Bill benefits. This commitment continues through the present-day work of the EBV, a cutting-edge training program in entrepreneurship and small business management offered to vets with disabilities to assist them in pursuing the American dream of business ownership, and the IVMF, an academic center that leverages the resources of higher education, in partnership with stakeholders and the support of JPMorgan Chase (JPMC), to develop research, educational and employment programs positioned to address the social and economic concerns of veterans and military families.

In addition to the IVMF, the University’s schools, colleges and institutes engage with veterans and the military community. SU’s portfolio of veterans programs include, among others, the:

• Defense Comptrollership Program (DCP) at the Whitman School of Management: a Department of Defense (DoD)-sponsored 12-month training, founded in 1952, that provides active duty and DoD civilians with skills to financially manage conflicts, fluctuations in defense budget and DoD management changes. More than 1,600 have completed the program and now hold the highest ranks of financial management in the DoD.
• Military Photojournalism (MPJ) and Military Motion Media (MMM) Programs at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications: a DoD-sponsored 10-month training for active duty Navy, Marine Corps, Army and Air Force personnel to become better storytellers. Offered to enlisted members serving as mass communication specialists, combat photographers and military journalists.
• National Security Studies (NSS) at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs: a DoD-sponsored professional development/training program for mid-level and senior civilian and military executives in public/private sectors at the center of decision making in strategic and operational security matters. More than 1,700 have participated in the program, founded in 1996. The program is led by Col. Bill Smullen (Ret.), former Chief of Staff to Gen. Colin Powell.
• Veterans Technology Program at the School of Information Studies (iSchool): a collaboration with JPMC, the non-credit certificate program offers 240 hours (six weeks)of training for veterans aspiring to careers in information technology in large corporations.