Raymond Toenniessen is the Deputy Executive Director at the D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families. As Deputy Executive Director, Toenniessen will lead the over 100 employees located both on campus in Syracuse, NY and in military communities across the country, growing the Institute’s 16 national training programs and community services, its research and evaluation capabilities, its coalition for veteran owned businesses and employers, the alumni and engagement network, and the policy work in Washington D.C.

In his previous role as Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Innovation, he was instrumental in managing the cultivation and development of all new projects, programs and strategic initiatives for the institute, working in partnership with the related IVMF departments where the programs will eventually reside. He worked with senior leadership to lead IVMF’s advancement strategy and serves as a liaison to the external advisory board. Also responsible for the institute’s development and advancement strategy, Toenniessen has forged trusted partnerships with private sector firms, foundations and individuals interested in impacting the concerns of military-connected community through philanthropy which has led to the institute empowering more than 200,000 service members, veterans and military family members since 2011.

Toenniessen graduated from Syracuse University and commissioned from its ROTC program as a Second Lieutenant. He served four years on active duty including a combat deployment to Iraq in 2008 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He was awarded a Bronze Star for his service. Upon his transition from active duty in 2010 he returned to Syracuse University as the first National Program Manager of the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans (EBV), expanding the program across the country to a partnership with ten world-class business schools while launching additional small business programs for veterans and their families out of the Whitman School of Management.

In 2011 he assisted Vice Chancellor Haynie in launching the D’Aniello IVMF initially serving as its director of programs and operations where he was responsible for launching the initial infrastructure of the institute.

Raymond holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations and political science from Syracuse’s College of Arts and Sciences and an MBA from the Saunders College of Business at the Rochester Institute of Technology.