Syracuse University

Managing Director, Institute for Veterans and Military Families

Managing Director

About

James Schmeling is co-founder of the Institute for Veterans and Military Families and serves as Managing Director. He is a member of the senior leadership team, and promotes the mission of the Institute by working with Syracuse University partners, with federal, state and local partners throughout the country, with Veterans, their families, NGOs, educational institutions, and others who have a stake in the mission and values of the Institute.

Schmeling is a U.S. Air Force veteran, served 6+ years, and was honorably discharged at rank of sergeant. He was stationed in Colorado, California, and Spain, and engaged with and supervised active duty Air Force and civil service employees as well as Spanish Air Force and Spanish National Geographic Institute staff. He began his education while serving in the U.S. Air Force, earning credits from the Community College of the Air Force. After leaving the Air Force, he earned his law degree, with distinction, from the University of Iowa in 1999, and his B.A. in political science with minor in international studies from Iowa State University in 1997. In the Air Force, Schmeling was assigned to the Air Force Technical Applications Center (AFTAC) and was a seismic systems computer-electronics technician (99104, later 9S100). He was responsible for repair logistics for all reparable assets worldwide in the Atomic Energy Detection System. While assigned to a field maintenance position at a remote detachment in Spain he also conducted resource protection, crime prevention, and counter-terrorism duties. He held Top Secret security clearance during active duty, was awarded the Air Force Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters, the National Defense Service Medal, and was a Distinguished Graduate, U.S. Air Force Noncommissioned Officer Preparatory Course, 1990. As part of his unit he was awarded the Air Force Organizational Excellence Award.

He was project director for the National Council on Disability study, Empowerment for Americans with Disabilities: Breaking Barriers to Careers and Full Employment, and an author for their study, The Impact of the Americans with Disabilities Act: Assessing the Progress Toward Achieving the Goals of the ADA.

Schmeling provides leadership and a direct role in the design, planning, implementation and evaluation of the Institute’s strategic plans and goals. He partners with senior administrators, faculty, researchers, fellows and students at Syracuse University.  He focuses on Veterans and inclusion activities on campus and with external stakeholders including board of advisors members, corporate, governmental, and non-governmental partners. Schmeling strengthens the Institute’s internal capacity to meet its mission and goals by assisting in the design and implementation of staffing, research, training and technical assistance, teaching, writing for peer-and non-peer reviewed journals and publications, curricula development and grant writing, building on his experience in two prior university research centers.

Schmeling has extensive experience related to Veterans, education, inclusion, assistive technology, and diversity, and social science and STEM disciplines. He has been Principal Investigator on three grants from Disabled American Veterans and the William Bingham Foundation for the disability-related components of the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans. He is Co-PI on a cooperative agreement from U.S. DOL/VETS on National Veterans Technical Assistance Center for Homeless Veterans Reintegration Projects. He is currently a member of the Veterans Best Practices Advisory Committee at Syracuse University, and an advisory board member of the Taishoff Center on Inclusive Higher Education at the Syracuse University College of Education.

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