Right: GCSEN CEO Mike Caslin with Alex Othmer, filming Veteran's Playbook, episode 8.
Apply here for the GCSEN Veteran 4P Social Ventures Program: Fall 2025 FastTrack Vet Ventures.
Do you want to embrace the transformative power of 4P Social Entrepreneurship to renew your passion and purpose, increase your peace and prosperity and be of service to the nation as a Social Entrepreneur through People, Profit, Planet and Place? We want to assist you in creating your very own success story!
This is the first cohort of our Vets' program in the Hudson Valley and is presented in collaboration with the Hudson Valley National Center for Veteran Reintegration, and is a campus partner program with Seton Hall University, who will provide all graduates with a Certificate of Achievement and opportunities for other programs.This is a 4-week, 50-hour blended program with 2 weekend meetings in Saugerties, New York, and mostly online work.
- Week 1 (10 hours) [November 21st, Saugerties NY]: Orientation/Fireside Chat, Social Entrepreneur self-assessment; introduction to Social Entrepreneurship via Prof. Greg Dees’ foundational paper, GCSEN Get to Wow! ebook/workbook and watching the GCSEN/CBS Veterans Playbook TV series episodes.
- Week 2 (10 hours) [Online, self-paced]: GCSEN’s SE 101 Principles of Social Entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial mindset coaching, and continued workbook course completion.
- Week 3 (20 hours) [Online, self-paced]: Vet Venture Launch Bootcamp (SE 102), pitch & prototype building, economics of unit modeling.
- Week 4 (10 hours) [Online, self-paced]:: Group and individual coaching, custom launch venture counseling, business startup evaluation and introduction to support services. Graduation with In-Person Ceremony on December 21st in Saugerties!
- Ongoing Follow-Up Custom Coaching starting January 21, 2026
Each program graduate will receive a formal GCSEN 4P Social Entrepreneurship certification, resume-enhancing badge, professional and media recognition, on-going business counseling, and a Seton Hall University Division of Continuing Education Certificate.
$5,000 Tuition Scholarship from the Caslin Family Philanthropy via the GCSEN Foundation for accepted candidates!
Between 10 and 50 applicants will be selected and you will be notified within a week of application about whether you are accepted to attend the program.
Veterans and military family members, apply here for GCSEN's FastTrack Venture BootCamp:
In 2023, after many years of focusing our educational efforts on colleges and universities, GCSEN decided to add more offerings for post-graduate adults. We identified an area of huge need: U.S. Military Veterans, Active Duty in Transition, and their families.
We began by launching our first-ever TV show, Veteran's Playbook, which aired on Discovery Network and CBS stations nationwide. In our show, hosted by our founder and CEO Mike Caslin, we sought out and highlighted the stories of entrepreneurs who told of the struggles and successes of life after the military.
A 10 YEAR TRACK RECORD OF SUCCESSFUL PROGRAMS – NOW FOR VETERANS!
Veteran News
On November 11th, Veteran’s Day 2024, local CBS stations across the nation aired our TV show, Veteran’s Playbook, to honor the Veterans who’ve risked their lives for America, by showing examples of real-life heroes who’ve gone on to start ventures that uplift their communities. At the same time, GCSEN President Professor Mike Caslin joined staff and volunteers to serve a dinner for Baltimore area homeless Veterans through its host The Baltimore Station (70 Veterans in Residence) and New Profit Community Action Social Entrepreneurs and Donor volunteers from The Well. More
Three Veterans who starred in GCSEN's TV Show, Veteran's Playbook: Patrick Powers, AJ Beaudoin, and Alex Othmer
Veterans' Programs
US Military Veterans have never had it easy. Especially those Transitioning from Active Duty or Long-Term underemployed. You know the challenges. It doesn’t have to be this way. That’s where GCSEN comes in… We assist & train Veterans to open their own venture businesses!
- In 2024, there were 17.5 million Veterans in the US civilian population.
- About 8 million Veterans were employed; about 9 million were over age 65. (Dept. of Labor)
- Over 60% of those 8 million working Veterans, 4.5 million were Underemployed (Penn State Veterans & LinkedIn Studies)
- And over 250,000 were completely Unemployed (Dept. of Labor)
- At least 48,000 US Veterans are Homeless today (Dept. Veterans Affairs)
- Since 2001, there are over 6,000 Veteran suicides in America annually. And the rate is ever increasing.
WHY?
Transitioning and maintaining in civilian life isn’t easy after years of service.
There’s often employer misunderstanding and a mismatch between Veteran skills and civilian job requirements. There is also discrimination against Veterans, and some have service-related disabilities. Many Veterans want to start their own businesses but need a realistic vision, ownership-readiness training and meaningful long-term business support.
GCSEN has programs to fill the gap for Veterans in transition, who may want to start a venture that gives them a leg up, makes money & gives back to their community & to the nation.
Above: GCSEN CEO Mike Caslin (Top Right) with Veteran Business-Owners-in Training
INTERESTED IN SPONSORING GCSEN VETERAN'S PROGRAMS IN THE HUDSON VALLEY?
Since 2015, GCSEN Foundation has been a world leader and innovator in teaching Entrepreneurship for Impact- 4P Social Entrepreneurship- and has expanded its focus on teaching our 4P values (People, Planet, Profit, Place) to include Veterans, Active-Duty Military, and their families.
Inspired by our trending television show in 2023, Veteran's Playbook, GCSEN Veteran's Programs offer the next step for Veterans to move from being inspired to being taught and supported in their own Veteran Venture exploration. Veteran’s Playbook showcased deeply inspiring success stories of Veterans who have founded their own ventures. These "Vetty winners" hail from our episodes, where we feature Veterans, who come from all backgrounds, military branches, and enlisted, commissioned officers, often with significant combat experience.
We would like to work with Veterans who, despite having lived through incredible trauma and adversity, are tapping into the skills developed in the military (Service, Integrity, Confidence, Grit, Perseverance, Resilience, Overcoming Adversity, Discipline, Attention to Detail, Problem-Solving, Resourcefulness, Flexibility, Stress Inoculation, Communication Skills, Teamwork, Mentorship and Leadership.)
And they want to embrace the transformative power of entrepreneurship to channel their grit and dreams, and pursue passion and purpose for peace and prosperity for themselves, their loved ones and their community. We want to assist you in creating your very own success story!
Sign up today!
What's in it for you?
Upon successful completion you will receive:
- A formal GCSEN 4P Social Entrepreneurship certification
- resume-enhancing badge
- professional and media recognition
- on-going business counseling
- Seton Hall University Division of Continuing Education Certificate
