| Veterans
News Flash 
New National Partnership of
Four Major Universities to
Support Veterans with Disabilities
Tuesday February 19, 8:00 am ET
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
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.
SOURCE:
Yahoo News
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