New National Partnership of Four Major Universities to Support Veterans with Disabilities

Business Wire, Feb 19, 2008

A new consortium between Syracuse University, UCLA, Texas A&M and Florida State University will provide post-9/11 veterans disabled in Iraq and Afghanistan training--at no cost--in small business management

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The year 2007 was the most violent for American troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. The number of military personnel wounded in the war on terror is now nearly 40,000. For many of these Americans, traditional employment may represent a lifelong challenge.

Throughout American history, entrepreneurship has been a means for veterans to provide for themselves and their families, and to re-engage the economic engine of their communities and the nation. Business ownership offers veterans the opportunity to "own their futures" while also offering the flexibility to accommodate the unique challenges associated with a service-connected disability.

Building on an innovative program created in 2007 by Syracuse University, the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University will lead a nationwide partnership with UCLA Anderson School of Management, Mays Business School at Texas A&M University and Florida State University's College of Business to offer cutting-edge training in entrepreneurship and small business management to veterans with disabilities. This consortium represents one of the first, significant partnerships since WWII among some of the country's most prestigious business schools focused specifically on opening the doors of America's colleges and universities to veterans motivated by business ownership.

The consortium is an extension of SU's Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities (EBV) program, first offered in summer 2007 at SU, which enrolled 20 veterans with disabilities. The EBV integrates world-class faculty, entrepreneurs, disability experts and business professionals in an educational program focused on training veterans in the competencies associated with small business ownership.

"Syracuse University and the Whitman School are proud to lead this new nationwide partnership," says SU Chancellor and President Nancy Cantor. "By expanding our innovative Bootcamp program across the nation, we will provide disabled men and women who have served abroad the resources and training to help them follow and pursue their dreams as they rejoin their communities at home."

The four-university EBV partnership will dramatically expand the ability to offer this valuable program to veterans with disabilities. At all four institutions, the EBV curriculum will be standardized, ensuring that all participants receive a consistent, high-quality experience.

"This consortium is an important and meaningful extension of the EBV program offered at the Whitman School and is the only academic partnership of its kind aimed at this unique group of American citizens," says Melvin T. Stith, dean of the Whitman School and a former U.S. Army captain. "On behalf of all of the four participating national universities, we are proud that institutes of higher education are stepping in to fill what is clearly a void for these veterans."

The EBV program is offered in three phases. Phase I is a self-study session in which the veterans complete courses through online discussions moderated by university faculty. Phase II is a nine-day residency where participants learn to develop their own business concepts and understand the basic elements of small business management. Phase III involves 12 months of ongoing support and mentorship from the faculty experts at the EBV universities. Throughout the EBV, students engage in experimental workshops to write business plans, raise capital, attract customers, and develop a marketing strategy that is most effective for their business model.

The program is entirely free to the veterans, including travel and accommodations.

"By offering veterans with disabilities the tools to create and grow their own businesses, we are helping them fight yet another battle--the battle for their own economic freedom," says Mike Haynie, assistant professor of entrepreneurship in the Whitman School, creator of the EBV and a former U.S. Air Force major. "There is, perhaps, no better way to thank them for their extraordinary service than to demonstrate our confidence in their bright futures."

Applications for the EBV are accepted on a rolling admissions basis. Early application is encouraged. To create disability-related curriculum and assist participants in understanding and leveraging programs at the intersection of disability and entrepreneurship, the EBV is offered in collaboration with SU's Burton Blatt Institute, which seeks to advances the civic, economic and social participation of persons with disabilities.

To apply, or for more information, visit http://whitman.syr.edu/eee/veterans or contact the Dean's Office in the Whitman School of Management at (315) 443-8736 or EBVinfo@syr.edu.