SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY'S IVMF AWARDED $750,000 TO ADDRESS POST-SERVICE EMPLOYMENT, CAREER PREPARATION AND TRAINING

The Pedersen Family Foundation grant will assist veterans and the federal intelligence community

SYRACUSE, NY, UNITED STATES, August 28, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Syracuse University’s D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) is proud to announce a generous grant from The Pedersen Family Foundation for research and career preparation and training services for the intelligence community alumni, military service members, veterans, and families. The $750,000 award will drive three distinct lines of effort to achieve meaningful impacts in the intelligence community national resource landscape, a regional needs assessment in the D.C. metropolitan area, and career preparation and training in artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.

“As we were considering our options of organizations to support, the IVMF has really risen to the top in all the ways to help veterans, especially in making a big difference to help re-establish a sense of community,” said Kara Hourihan, The Pedersen Family Foundation Executive Director. “The Pedersen Family built their livelihood on the mission of serving the country, and because veterans made up a large number of their employees, they wanted to ensure that veterans have opportunities to successfully transfer skills and feel empowered and ready for what’s next.”

Roughly half of the 250,000 service members who transition from service every year indicate that their transition was difficult or very difficult. Resource navigation and employment represent major concerns for veterans and their families in the D.C. area and the intelligence community at large. As the global cybersecurity workforce is estimated to grow by more than 30% over the next decade, there is a gap in the supply of qualified workers of 500,000 or more.

The newly funded project will address these needs through actionable research and recommendations, advocacy, and program service delivery. It will assess the economic landscape after widescale federal workforce impacts on veterans, military spouses, and service-disabled veteran-owned businesses. It will also expand access to career opportunities through two industry career roadmaps in AI and cybersecurity through the IVMF’s Onward to Opportunity program.

“This grant from The Pedersen Family Foundation exemplifies our shared values and enables us to deliver on our commitment to advance the post-service lives of the nation’s military veterans and their families,” said IVMF Deputy Executive Director Raymond Toenniessen. “Our experience in career training and credentialing, and vast expertise in measurement and evaluation ensures that this project will achieve substantial and measurable impact and help achieve our vision of a future where everyone who has served in the defense of our nation is empowered to thrive.”

“For us, the most important thing is impact. The way the IVMF approaches their research with such diligence, the level of being engaged in understanding what needs to be done and working with regional resources to deliver on it is very interesting to us,” said Hourihan. “We try to represent people and give back to those who share our values of impact, innovation, patriotism, courage, compassion, and humility. The IVMF is a direct realization of that.”

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About Syracuse University’s D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families
Syracuse University's D’Aniello Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) delivers no-cost career training and entrepreneurship programs across the U.S. and globally, while also conducting actionable research, policy analysis and program evaluations for corporations and a multitude of other veteran service organizations. We help ease the transition after service back into communities for service members, veterans, and their families as we prepare them for successful careers or business ownership. We've impacted more than 240,000 transitioning service members, veterans, and military family members to date.

About The Pedersen Family Foundation
The Pedersen Family Foundation was established following the sale of Mantech International, a strategic defense company founded by George and Marilyn Pedersen. Mantech has long been dedicated to assisting the government—specifically the armed forces and intelligence agencies—in fulfilling their missions to ensure the safety and security of the United States, both now and in the future. In honor of this legacy, the Foundation is dedicated to supporting our nation’s founding principles and those who serve and protect it. Additionally, it aims to support efforts to harness the potential of neuroaesthetics, and further the health, wellbeing, and resiliency of Americans. The Foundation strives to achieve measurable impact and focus on innovative, compassionate, and courageous initiatives.

Charlie Poag
Syracuse University
cpoag@syr.edu

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