D'Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families

For the Navy's 249th birthday we are showcasing some of our Entrepreneurship program alumni that also happen to be Navy veterans.

The D’aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) is proud to introduce the 71 veteran and military spouse founders and executives of our first IVMF Bunker Labs CEOcircle cohort. They represent some of our nation’s brightest rising stars in the world of business. Together, they’ll go on a 13-month journey to grow and scale their ventures, learning from not just each other, but a roster of high-profile guest speakers and advisors assembled by IVMF and JPMorgan Chase Commercial Banking.

It’s Hispanic Heritage Month through October 15th, and to celebrate, we’re looking at some of the standout founders from the broad portfolio of Entrepreneurship programs here at the D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF). These incredible companies are leading the way in a variety of industries, and showcase the diverse talents and contributions from the Latinx veteran entrepreneurship community.

Mike was part of IVMF’s Entrepreneur Bootcamp for Veterans (EBV) through the Purdue campus in 2013. He initially thought his playbook would be a for-profit business, sharing his combination of exercise and positive psychology in group settings. It became very clear over the course of EBV that he could do more good as a non-profit sharing his experience and program with veterans.

Jessica van Dop DeJesus is a Marine Corps veteran, an entrepreneur, and a Veterans in Residence (ViR) alumni. Bunker Labs is proud to have recently added her to our staff, as well, where Jessica serves as our Latinx cohort facilitator for our Breaking Barriers in Entrepreneurship (BBiE) program.

Julio Osorio was a marine. A proud reservist serving in Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 23rd Marines. He already served a tour overseas, supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom in ‘04-05. So, when the powers-that-be assembled the unit in the hangar bay, he knew he didn’t have to go back. He did his tour, and now it was someone else’s turn. Except his brother was one of those “someone elses”.

James Schlauch and Apply are working to address the issue of Brain Waste for both job seekers and recruiters.

It’s PCS season, and hundreds of thousands of servicemembers and their families will face the daunting task of moving across state or even national lines. Picking up your entire life and moving every few years is part of the military experience, and most servicemembers and military spouses are familiar with the frustrations and headaches that come along with it. We’ve compiled a list of IVMF alumni running companies right now that want to help your next PCS experience be your best. Give them a look today!

IVMF Bunker Labs is proud to welcome our second cohort of Veterans in Residence since joining Syracuse University’s D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF). These 142 entrepreneurs will spend the next 10 weeks going from ideation or early start up and working toward growth as they acquire basic skills necessary for entrepreneurship and validate their ideas in the marketplace.   

Keith knows the power of bootstrapping, hard-won knowledge from his experiences launching Cayuga Climbs. He brought that same energy to Aedify, managing the basic coding on his own thanks to some experience with Python. Things were moving forward, but as a military spouse and the constant moves that come with it, building a network was proving a challenge.