Jake was born and raised in Southern New Jersey before attending the Pennsylvania State University where he majored in Economics on an Army ROTC scholarship. Jake graduated and was commissioned into the US Army in May 2013 and began a seven-year Army career as an infantry officer. After graduating first in his Infantry Officer Class, Jake graduated from Airborne and Ranger Schools before serving in his first assignment as an Airborne Infantry Platoon Leader, forward stationed in Vicenza, Italy. After three years supporting operations throughout Europe, Jake returned to the US and was selected for assignment to the Asymmetric Warfare Group out of Fort Meade, MD.

While there, Jake served in a variety of roles and deployed throughout the Middle East supporting a diverse set of operations. In the fall of 2020, Jake transitioned from active service and began a full-time, two-year master’s degree at Harvard Business School. While at school, Jake, along with two other Army veterans, started a protective furniture company that provides comprehensive and non-threatening defense against active shooter violence in school classrooms. They have scaled the company from concept to more than $500K sales in under two years.