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Jared Lyon is an executive leader, institution builder, and U.S. Navy veteran with a track record of growing mission-driven, member-based organizations, strengthening institutional credibility, and leading at the intersection of membership organizations, public trust, and policy.

He is best known for his tenure as President & CEO of Student Veterans of America (2016–2026). He was hired as Chief Development Officer in August 2014, stepped in as Acting CEO in August 2015 with the organization carrying significant debt and minimal operating liquidity, was confirmed as President & CEO in January 2016 following a Korn Ferry-led national search, and led a full operating turnaround. By the end of the tenure, SVA had grown from roughly 400 chapters into a national network of more than 1,600 chapters across all 50 states and three countries. He concluded the tenure debt-free, with healthy audited net assets and a board-designated reserve. Across the twelve-year tenure, the team he led stewarded more than $71 million in cumulative organizational revenue under eleven consecutive unqualified audit opinions, including an $8 million unrestricted gift from MacKenzie Scott received in March 2022 — the largest single gift in the organization's history.

Under Lyon's leadership, Student Veterans of America strengthened its position as a trusted national voice at the intersection of higher education, workforce outcomes, public policy, and veteran success. He built multi-million dollar strategic partnerships with companies including RTX, Boeing, The Walt Disney Company, Google, and TikTok, and he has regularly testified before the U.S. House and Senate Committees on Veterans' Affairs.

What distinguishes Lyon's experience is a deep understanding of institutions where community is central to the model — growing and sustaining member-driven organizations, supporting chapter and affiliate-style networks, and aligning mission, governance, revenue, and public-facing leadership around a clear value proposition. He is a sought-after keynote speaker and public representative for mission-driven work.

Before becoming President & CEO, Lyon served as SVA's Chief Development Officer and Executive Vice President of Operations. Earlier, he served as National Program Manager for the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans at Syracuse University's Institute for Veterans and Military Families, leading an eight-university consortium, and held leadership roles with the Washington Nationals Baseball Club.

Lyon remains active in governance and civic leadership, serving on the George W. Bush Institute Advisory Council, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Advisory Committee on Education, the Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation Advisory Council, and the Florida State University Student Affairs Development Council. He also serves as an Adjunct Professor of Entrepreneurship & Emerging Enterprises at Syracuse University.

His leadership style is grounded in his military service. Lyon enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 2001 and served as a Submariner and Diver in the U.S. Navy Submarine Force aboard USS Alexandria (SSN 757) from 2001 to 2005, during the opening years of the Global War on Terrorism.

Lyon is a Ph.D. student in the Social Science Ph.D. Program at Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Citizenship & Public Affairs, with coursework complete and his dissertation committee forming. He holds a Master of Public Administration from the Maxwell School, a Bachelor of Science from Florida State University, and an Associate of Arts from Eastern Florida State College.

His honors include selection as a Presidential Leadership Scholar and service as Grand Marshal of the 2020 New York City Veterans Day Parade. Lyon lives in Tampa, Florida, with his family.