Military Hiring Academy

Shaun Broeker is a partner at Thompson Coburn LLP, a national AMLAW 150 law firm, where he leads the firms Defense and Aerospace team and serves as a trusted litigation attorney for businesses across various industries.

As an Army veteran with a tour to Iraq, Shaun has firsthand knowledge of the positive impact that veterans make in their communities.  To strengthen Missouri’s workforce, Shaun founded Welcome Home Missouri, a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening the state’s workforce by relocating transitioning service members, veterans, and their families from around the nation to Missouri.  To showcase the state’s commitment to veterans, Shaun founded the Welcome Home Forum, a fireside chat series that dives into universal themes shaping our communities, workplaces, and personal growth, with a particular emphasis on the veteran experience.

Shaun is also the founder of 4Serve, a tech startup that leverages technology to strengthen connections within service communities–such as military personnel and veterans, law enforcement officers and first responders, medical professionals, and educators–by linking them to supportive businesses.

A lifelong Missourian, Shaun was raised in Gasconade County and now resides in St. Louis with his wife, Miriah Broeker.

Tony Bryan, CyberUp’s Executive Director, has served the nonprofit community for more than 14 years. He spent nine years serving in the United States Army, where he was known as the youngest Military Police Sergeant in Brigade. Succeeding his time in the military, Tony was appointed by the Governor of Missouri to serve on the Workforce Development Board and chosen to lead CyberUp. As the Executive Director of a nationally recognized organization, Tony remains passionate for growing apprenticeship opportunities to energize the country’s workforce. He was chosen to serve as the co-chair for the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Apprenticeship Sub Working Group. Outside of work, you can see Tony adventuring outdoors or playing video games.

Clarinda Dir has been with UCM for eight years as the Program Manager for Workforce and Professional Education and has served as an adjunct instructor for UCM’s Harmon College for 15 years. A first-generation, non-traditional student, she earned both a BSBA and an MBA from the University of Central Missouri. Before joining UCM, Clarinda dedicated 32 years to the nonprofit sector in the Kansas City metro area as a Program Manager. She often shares that UCM is her “retirement job”—chosen out of her love for the students, the university, and its commitment to community service.

Since 2007, Tom Krahenbuhl has been a Certified Ombudsman for the Department of Defense/ESGR.

In 2013, Tom was appointed to Missouri Committee Ombudsman Director where he maintained a program of qualified ombudsman across the state to meet the needs of both service members and their employers. They answered inquires that may have come up and worked with various other agencies to address any concerns or problems that service members or their employers might have had.

In 2018, Tom was appointed by ESGR national to serve on the Ombudsman Sub Committee representing the Central Region of the country.

Patrick Muenks joined the staff of the Missouri Military Advocate in June 2024 as a strategic advisor and special assistant with expertise in military and government affairs, client relations and nonprofit management. He has held numerous executive, strategic and leadership positions in addition to his work in the private sector as a business development consultant. Muenks is a retired Army aviator and former Command Chief Warrant Officer of the Missouri Army National Guard where he served in that capacity from 2017-2021 as a senior advisor to the Missouri Adjutant General.

Prior to his assignment as Command Chief Warrant Officer, Muenks was employed as a federal military technician with the Missouri Army National Guard serving as an instructor pilot, maintenance test pilot and aviation logistics officer stationed at Ft. Leonard Wood and Jefferson City, Missouri. Before entering federal civil service, Muenks was a private business development consultant and held positions as executive director of the Foundation for Linn State Technical College and as a career and technical education administrator with Ozarks Technical Community College and the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

A Traditional Guardsman most of his career, Muenks had periods of assignment in the Active Guard and Reserve program and on active duty. He retired after 41 years of service at the rank of Chief Warrant Officer Five (CW5). Muenks enlisted in the Missouri Army National Guard in 1980 and was commissioned through the Army Reserve Officers Training Corps, University of Missouri in 1984. He graduated from the Army Medical Department Officer Basic Course, Fort Sam Houston, Texas, as a Medical Service Corps Officer in 1985 and attended U.S. Army Helicopter Flight Training at Fort Rucker, Alabama, in 1986.  He completed UH-1H pilot qualification in January 1987 and received his Warrant Officer appointment in 1992.

Muenks’ military helicopter qualifications include the UH-1H/V Iroquois, UH-60A/L Black Hawk, and UH-72A Lakota. During his aviation career he served as a Maintenance Test Flight Examiner, Standardization Instructor Pilot, Instrument Flight Examiner and Aviation Safety Officer.  His combat deployments include Operation Desert Storm/Desert Shield, two tours in Iraq supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom and a tour in Afghanistan supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. He is a military Legion of Merit recipient, twice awardee of the Bronze Star and Air Medal, and an inductee in the Army Aviation Association of America Order of St. Michael.

Muenks received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1985 and Master of Education Degree in 1994 from the University of Missouri-Columbia.  He held state certifications as a school administrator and career and technical education instructor. Muenks is a lifelong Missourian, a former school board member and licensed pilot involved in numerous community level organizations. He and his wife Mary are parents of two married children and reside in Linn, Missouri.

David Pearce currently serves as the Executive Director for Governmental Relations at UCM. Appointed in 2019, Pearce works closely with President Best and senior administrators to craft legislative priorities as well as coordinate with key elected officials and staff members to communicate UCM’s legislative priorities. In addition, Pearce works to identify fiscal resources that may apply to UCM, provide legislative reports to the Board of Governors, and manage responses to legislator’s and governor’s office inquiries.

Pearce served 8 years in the Missouri Senate, representing constituents from the 21st and 31st Senatorial Districts. He also served 6 years in the Missouri House of Representatives. Pearce served as chair of the Senate Education Committee for 5 years and served on the Appropriations Committee for his entire tenure in the Senate. He also served on the Agriculture Committee and served as Chair of the Midwestern Higher Education Compact and served on the Missouri Veterans Commission.

Pearce currently serves on the Whiteman Area Leadership Council Board of Directors, and the Warrensburg Chamber of Commerce Military Affairs Committee.  He is also active in the Missouri Chamber of Commerce Tech Caucus.

Pearce is a graduate of the University of Missouri in Columbia and is a native of Warrensburg. He and his wife Teresa are active members of the Warrensburg community. They have two grandchildren.

Melissa began her career with Capital One, working across several lines of business including Technology, Risk Management and Human Resources. Playing an integral role in executive recruiting, Melissa worked cross functionally with the CEO, Executive Committee, and head of executive recruiting to build out its Retail Bank team. 

Melissa would join Capital One’s first ever military focused recruiting team helping to shape the program and initiatives, serving as the partnership point of contact and military spouse guest speaker at various military connected events. Capital One would go on to win the HOH (Hiring Our Heroes) military spouse employment award in 2016. 

After a 3-year career break, Melissa joined Freedom Learning Group, an EdTech private equity backed firm, committed to hiring military spouses and veterans, upskilling and providing a platform for professionals to stay relevant in their professional fields through academic content development. Melissa stood up a talent acquisition team, strategy, and process, leveraging years of recruitment experience. 

Today, Melissa leads the Military Spouse Program at Hiring Our Heroes, which provides an ecosystem of events and programs in support of military spouse employment. 

Melisa grew up in a military family at Ft. Meade, Maryland where her father served in the Army for 22 years before retiring after Desert Storm. Now an active-duty military spouse, Melissa resides at Ft. Leavenworth in Kanas City with husband Eric and goldendoodle, Tucker. 

Courtney Swoboda, Director of Military and Veteran Services, joined the University of Central Missouri in 2018. Her leadership has led to significant recognition for the university, including bronze, gold, and current ranking of top ten number three for large public institutions for Military Friendly® and Military Friendly® Spouse Schools designations.

Under Swoboda’s guidance, several impactful initiatives were implemented, including granting In-State Rates to all military-affiliated students and establishing a partnership with Air University as an AU-ABC partner. Swoboda co-founded and co-chairs the Missouri Organization of Veteran Education Specialists, fostering collaboration among Missouri peers in the field. Swoboda is engaged with the Chamber of Commerce Military Affairs Community, has previously served as a delegate at large for the National Association of Veterans’ Program Administrators, and serves on various committees on campus.

In addition, Swoboda serves in the Air Force Reserves at Whiteman Air Force Base. Over her 11-year service, she has fulfilled various roles, including Aircraft Armament Specialist, Education and Training Technician, and now as a Talent Management Consultant.

Tuesday, April 15

Registration  |  8:30am
Program  |   9am—4:30pm

Wednesday, April 16

Registration  |  8:30am
Program  |   9am—4:30pm