The Capital Readiness Program represents the U.S. Commerce Department’s largest investment in support of underserved entrepreneurs.
At a recent White House ceremony, Vice President Harris named the University’s D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families as one of 43 grantees of the MBDA Capital Readiness Program (CRP). The CRP is a technical assistance program to help underserved entrepreneurs grow and scale their businesses. The IVMF has been awarded a $3-million grant to develop and launch a business incubator and accelerator for veteran-owned businesses across the U.S. The IVMF program will focus on veteran-owned businesses in their first ten years of operation and with revenue under $10 million. According to IVMF research, these young and new ventures are most impacted by the barriers associated with accessing the capital required to launch and grow a business.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are more than 2.4 million veteran business owners in the United States, who employ 5.7 million Americans and contribute, on average, $1.2 trillion in economic activity each year.
To drive new investment and capital to small businesses across America, the IVMF will support veteran-owned businesses with education, technical assistance, access to capital, and the crucial networking opportunities necessary for veteran-owned businesses to leverage corporate and federal contracts.
“The IVMF has been educating, connecting, and supporting veteran and military-affiliated entrepreneurs for more than a decade,” said Dr. Mike Haynie, Vice Chancellor, Founder and Executive Director of the IVMF and Executive Dean of the Martin J. Whitman School of Management. “This new award will enhance pathways to capital for veteran entrepreneurs, support the development of curriculum to educate future business owners about capital access, and facilitate research and analysis that will inform policymakers and practitioners as to the opportunities and challenges associated with military-connected business ownership in the U.S.”
The IVMF manages a variety of national entrepreneurship training programs specifically for veterans and military spouses and has provided business ownership training to more than 70,000 individuals since 2008. The Institute’s programs focus on the critical stages in a veteran or spouse’s business ownership journey from ideation and start-up, through growth and beyond. These data-driven programs are offered at no cost to eligible veterans and spouses, and feature instructional components led by world-class leaders and educators from across the nation.
A critical component of this new program will be building pathways to success for minority and underrepresented veteran-owned small businesses. Services will be a combination of virtual and in person opportunities. To reach businesses located in rural communities, the IVMF will leverage a partnership with the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE), the nation’s leading co-creator and distributor of resources to transform underserved communities through community college engagement.
“NACCE is delighted to partner with Syracuse University’s D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Affairs to execute the MBDA Capital Readiness Program. This transformative initiative will reach thousands of underserved and would-be entrepreneurs and advance NACCE’s vision to create equity and prosperity for all, through our network of over 360 community colleges, universities and HBCUs,” said Rebecca Corbin, president & CEO of NACCE.
NACCE represents more than 300 community and technical colleges which serve more than four million students nationally, of which approximately 5% are veterans.
More than 2,500 eligible business owners are anticipated to receive support through this program over the course of four years. During this period, the CRP will support up to six networking events each year and is projected to generate more than $8,500,000 in raised capital for Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Individuals (SEDI).
# # #
About Syracuse University’s IVMF
Syracuse University’s D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) was founded in 2011, as a partnership between Syracuse University and JPMorgan Chase & Co. Headquartered on the campus of Syracuse University and located in the Daniel and Gayle D’Aniello Building at the Syracuse University’s National Veterans Resource Center, the IVMF was founded as higher-education’s first interdisciplinary academic institute singularly focused on advancing the lives of the nation’s military, veterans, and their families. The IVMF team designs and delivers class-leading training programs and services to the military-connected community, in support of the transition from military to civilian life and beyond. Each year, more than 20,000 service members, veterans, and family members engage IVMF programs and services, which are provided at largely no cost to participants. The IVMF’s programs are informed by the Institute’s sustained and robust data collection, research, and policy analysis team and infrastructure. The D’Aniello Institute’s work on behalf of the military-connected community is made possible by gifts and grants from individuals and corporations committed to those who served in America’s armed forces and their families. For more information, please visit ivmf.syracuse.edu
About NACCE
The National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE) is a 501(c) (3) organization dedicated to promoting entrepreneurship through community colleges by providing resources and support to build and sustain high-impact entrepreneurship programs. The association represents 340+ community and technical colleges, universities and HBCU’s including over 2,000 faculty, staff, administrators and presidents who serve more than three million students. For more information, visit nacce.com.
For more information, please contact Stephanie Salanger, Director of Communications 315-443-5690, ssalange@syr.edu