Protégé Spotlight
ACP periodically recognizes veterans who have gone above and beyond the requirements of the Mentoring Program to make the most of their mentorships.
Mentors nominate their Protégés for this recognition by submitting a brief description detailing their Protégé's efforts and dedication to spotlight@acp-usa.org. Mentors can nominate their Protégés at any point throughout their mentorship and are encouraged to submit nominations as often as they wish. Selected nominations are then featured on our website and social media to celebrate the successes of these motivated veteran Protégés.
I would like to nominate Aaron Lynch not only for his diligence and determination to land a great role after his service but also for his natural curiosity to explore many paths toward success. Since I have had the pleasure of working with Aaron, he has clearly articulated what he was seeking and actively pursued ideas and recommendations that we discussed. He has taken training, read books, and come prepared with topics where he needed guidance.
Over the course of our biweekly sessions, we started with goals and aspirations around a range of topics such as career, family, finances, health, and well-being to name a few. The intent was to develop a well-balanced life. I offered my successes as well as my failures in the hope that he would learn from them. We discussed time-proven techniques and tools for continuous improvement and growth. Aaron accepted a great position fairly quickly and already had his sights set on career management and upward mobility.
Given Aaron’s extensive leadership experience in the Army, I quickly learned that there is a wealth of experiences and knowledge that our military veterans can provide us. Any corporation would be EXTREMELY fortunate to have our veterans as part of its team, as leaders who will help our organizations achieve the next level of disciplined excellence. We continue to meet biweekly with any topic that comes up during the month such as effective team dynamics, fine-tuning leadership style, and personal finance. He is now pursuing his MBA while finishing up an ambitious academic capstone project. I look forward to our discussions, and building a lasting friendship, and wish him the very best!
Mentor: Phil Kurumunda, New York, NY, Metlife
When we first met Mike felt a little lost as this was the first time in his career he didn't feel confident about his next step.
Working together we were able to help him focus.
We developed a bit of a roadmap that had him look at those things in his career and hopefully future career which would give him personal and professional satisfaction.
Throughout his career, he has been a leader since 2002 and this contributed to his success in the Air Force as well as his self-confidence.
At this point in his career, it was the first time that his self-confidence needed a bit of a boost.
We have met at least once a month and sometimes more and in that time he has been able to look at a variety of companies and jobs and as he continues the process he has a better grasp of what he is actually looking for.
Mike doesn't just want a job he wants a career that will offer him the opportunity to use his strong Air Force background and skill sets while continuing to grow and learn.
Mike's background will be an asset to any company.
Mentor: Fran Sharp, New York, NY, Bloomberg
I would like to nominate Yohana because she has demonstrated the focus & drive of a leader through this process thus far.
Yohana began the process understanding her needs and making herself available to accept all guidance that I have to offer.
In our short time together, Yohana clearly articulated her goals & has continually made progress. Specifically, she has met with a professional resume writer and asked me to review the finished product.
Yohana also reviewed numerous colleges to determine which Paralegal degree program would work best for her. She ultimately selected a program after scheduling a virtual meeting with the VA (funding parameters) & a school representative.
Yohana has accomplished all of the above and more while finishing her undergraduate degree & preparing to close out her United States Army career.
Yohana is a phenomenal person who will accomplish her eventual goal of working in the immigration law space.
She is a pleasure to work with.
Mentor: Rhonda Moody, Virginia Beach, VA, Hampton Commonwealth's Attorney's Office
Marcus is a young, vibrant, and former member of the US Air Force, who currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona.
For the past 4 months, Marcus and I have been meeting every month and working closely on an oriented approach for his career growth in terms of skill development and job achievement.
Marcus maximized his opportunities by working according to the plan and completed the 2 key certifications in the Network Security domain within a record span of 3 months.
As a mentor, I am impressed with Marcus’s action-oriented approach and preparation for our mentoring sessions. He also actively implemented the strategies discussed through the mentoring sessions. Throughout our time together, Marcus consistently met the monthly goals.
This achievement is a testament to Marcus's brilliance, dedication, and hard work. He is brimming with ideas, questions, and a palpable passion for technology. Over the months, he transformed his raw enthusiasm into a focused pursuit of knowledge and innovation and finally landed a job with
This is just a first step towards his dream of the journey in IT; we will be working together to achieve his mid and long-term goals for the next 12 months.
Mentor: Ramesh Nyathani, Schaumburg, IL, US Foods Inc.
Gaby approached this program with a very positive attitude and lots of great energy. I could tell that juggling a full-time job, online classes in the evening, and family responsibilities at home was a challenging task for Gaby, but he was able to persevere and keep pushing toward his goals. The job search process can be very daunting when you're trying to enter a new field you haven't worked in previously, but Gaby kept his head down and continued to reach out and apply until he managed to ultimately land his first job in IT. I admire his grit and mental toughness that allowed him to keep pushing forward and believe it will continue to carry him through future challenges as he continues to build a successful career.
Mentor: Kazou Nakashima, Broomfield, CO, Arista Networks
Jefferson is an outstanding individual and is truly making the most of ACP during his transition from the U.S. Air Force to a civilian career. During our initial interactions, Jefferson highlighted some of his unique skill sets and how those might assist in his search for an appropriate position in the corporate world. We worked together on resume reviews, interview pointers, and job searches, along with a myriad of other discussions about the challenges each of us feels as we transition. ACP provided a goldmine of resources to help along the way. Although Jefferson was focused on a specific company that could utilize his previous experience working at the Pentagon, he did not allow a focus on one company to limit his interaction with a wide array of opportunities in the DC area. This proved valuable, as Jefferson recently began a new career utilizing those valuable skill sets with a company supporting activities back inside the Pentagon! Our Mentor/Protégé connection continues as Jefferson navigates the Human Resource hurdles associated with starting a new job. Personally, I truly appreciated Jefferson offering myself and my family a tour of the Pentagon as he completed his time on active duty – an awesome trip to DC, and a true demonstration of his commitment to the ACP program! My family and I will be forever grateful to Jefferson for his time and efforts to make the tour possible. Overall, this American Corporate Partners relationship has been mutually beneficial in multiple ways, and I look forward to seeing Jefferson excel in the years to come!
Mentor: Kyle Kotlhoff, Gurley, AL, Lockheed Martin