At a crossroads. That is how Master Chief Petty Officer Nick Cordonez described his current state of mind. Cordonez had made the Navy his home since the age of 18, when he decided to enlist. Plus, the military had fulfilled its promise to him. He had traveled. He had learned the art of self-discipline. He knew how to distinguish between who “had his back” and who didn’t. And, he had increased his options by acquiring enough GI Bill® benefits to pay for his college degree.

But now, as Officer Cordonez sat in front of a slightly outdated personal computer, where the term, “Navy” had been scratched into the side with some kind of laser device, he felt uncertain about his future. Cordonez considered that he was at a crossroads between making the military his career, and retiring to pursue a degree; then, landing a high-paying civilian job in the corporate sector. But, for the first time in a long time, Cordonez felt uncertain about what to do. 

Dr. Michael Haynie, founder & executive director of the D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) at Syracuse University, believes that Cordonez would have had an easier time evaluating his options, if military leaders and higher education administrators formed stronger partnerships to address the challenges facing an all-volunteer force.

According to Dr. Haynie (who also serves as vice chancellor for strategic initiatives and innovation, and Barnes professor of entrepreneurship), military and higher education institutions must collaborate to offer better post-service opportunities for veterans, enabling them to bridge the gap between education and service.

He speaks from experience. Haynie grew up in Philadelphia and entered the Air Force when he was 18. He was not from a military family, but decided to enlist anyway, because he was “looking to be part of something bigger than myself, and to serve.” Among his most influential experiences in the service was working as a professor of management at the Air Force Academy from 2000 – 2003. Dr. Haynie credits this time period with greatly influencing his desire to pursue higher education as a career. 

“I fell in love with teaching and being around students,” he said.

Fourteen years later, Dr. Haynie transitioned from the military with a MBA, and a PhD in entrepreneurship and innovation. He was hired by Syracuse University as a professor and has remained at that institution since 2006. Among his accomplishments is launching the IVMF in 2011.

“I proposed we create that institute here at Syracuse,” Dr. Haynie said. “It was very impactful. We saw in a very real way how a program like that could affect the lives of service members and veterans, and we have had other universities take notice.”

He continues:

“It was that experience that motivated me to think bigger. I want to create an opportunity to start conversations with the leaders in higher education and private business about the military community.”

“I think what we are really trying to do is to change the narrative; one consequence of the all-volunteer force is that most Americans don’t know anyone who has served. That’s one of the biggest challenges that veterans face. The hope is to leverage American colleges and universities as a place to bring veterans home; re-socialize them to society and let them know they have opportunities.”

Robert E. Rue, Sr. MBA., a veteran who spent 20 years in the Army, and earned a master’s degree in IT management, agreed with Dr Haynie’s observations. Rue works as an adjunct professor, teaching IT and business ethics for Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, and serves as the deputy director of 20th Communications Squadron for the Air Force.

Rue stated: “A lot of times as a veteran that has made the leap from the military to the corporate environment, a lot of things get lost in translation. For instance, the jargon, the cultural colloquialisms, and the structural differences between a corporate and a military environment; especially for IT. What ends up happening quite often is that veterans gravitate toward the culture they know, embrace, and understand; but the corporate culture is much more individualistic.”

Rue observed that in the military, there is esprit de corps, camaraderie, and a sense of working together to achieve a common goal. However, he said that service members often retire without understanding what qualities they have that would make them a good civilian leader.

“That is where education and corporations can set a similar goal, by sprinkling expectations of executive knowledge within the academic curriculum.”

Issak Hernandez approaches the issue of joint cooperation between education and industry from a purely pragmatic point of view. As project coordinator for the Office of Strategic Initiatives and Innovations at Syracuse; the Army veteran previously worked for companies, maintaining and administering their software systems. Hernandez hopes to apply his IT education as well as “soft skills” he developed in the Army, to a corporate position. 

“Career-wise, I would see myself obtaining a project management professional certificate. Now, I want to keep up to date with the skills these companies are looking for.”

“What we try to do is build the value proposition for faculty and university leaders that bringing veterans to our campuses makes our institutions better,” says Dr. Haynie. “They bring a global experience. They bring a cross-cultural experience. They bring a maturity and set of experiences that positively impact the learning environment for all students.”

Higher education institutions, the military, and private entities must collaborate to offer better post-service opportunities for veterans to bridge the gap between education and service. How are you doing this on your campus and what strategies have you found to be worthy of pursuing?

Article Topics

Military Friendly Institutions Serving Military in HigherEd Veterans Academic Success Women Veterans Working as a Veteran in HigherEd

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