Ryan Pavel
CEO, Warrior-Scholar Project | Chicago, Illinois
Ryan Pavel has long held a deep conviction about military service – enlisted veterans have unlimited potential to leverage their military service to succeed in higher education and beyond, if given the right tools and support.
Pavel enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps at the age of 17 and concluded his service five years later with the rank of sergeant. During his time with the Corps, he deployed twice to Iraq in non-combat missions as an Arabic linguist. After his military service, Pavel received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and a law degree from the University of Virginia.
“The Marine Corps did exactly what I hoped it would. It kicked me into high gear, exposed me to people and cultures I had no previous experience with, and helped me find purpose and direction,” said Pavel. “After five years and a couple deployments later, I knew that the next step was higher education.”
Pavel started his journey to help veterans transition from the military to higher education as a volunteer with the Warrior-Scholar Project in 2013, shortly after the nonprofit was founded. Over the next five years, he worked part-time to launch an academic boot camp for the Project at the University of Michigan, his alma mater.
Today, with Pavel as CEO, the Warrior-Scholar Project has 19 university partners and assists thousands of veterans pursuing higher education through academic boot camps and workshops. The organization reports that 88 percent of participants have or will earn a bachelor’s degree.
“When veterans are equipped with education and fully supported, they are the ideal citizens that can help positively influence the direction our country takes,” Pavel shared.
Mike Bost
Member of U.S. House of Representatives; IL-12 | Murphysboro, Illinois
For the past decade, Mike Bost has represented Illinois’ 12th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Since 2023, he has chaired the House Veterans' Affairs Committee. These public service roles are a natural progression for Bost, whose life has been instilled with Marine Corps values since childhood.
Following in the footsteps of his father, grandfather, and uncle, Bost enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps after graduating from high school. He served from 1979 to 1982, where he was trained as an electronic specialist and radar repairman. He received an honorable discharge as a corporal E-4.
After returning home to Murphysboro in southern Illinois, Bost worked for the family business, Bost Trucking Service, for 13 years, then chose to become a firefighter, graduating from the University of Illinois’ Certified Firefighter II Academy in 1993. From 1995 to 2015, Bost served as an Illinois state representative and remained a member of the Murphysboro Fire Department for six of his ten terms in state office.
His entry into the political sphere was motivated by his wife Tracy, who urged him to “shut up or get involved” when Bost expressed frustration with local government. His success in the state of Illinois led him to seek a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, which he secured in 2015.
Through all of his political work, the role that Bost enjoys the most is chair of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, where he has passionately fought for improving veterans services.
“As a Marine, the father of a Marine and the grandfather of a Marine, my proudest achievement is being able to serve our veterans in such an important role and there is much more to be done to ensure that our veterans receive the care they deserve.”