Staff Members

El-Java is a small business development and management consultant, working with aspiring entrepreneurship and startups in a variety of industries including retail, food production, service provision, and social enterprise. He presents talks on entrepreneurship and small business ownership as the key to economic development for local groups, including business consultants, social service providers, nonprofit organizations, as well as educational institutions and conferences throughout the country. El-Java has a vast knowledge-base and experience with challenges and opportunities related to self-employment in marginalized populations such as minorities and women, individuals with disabilities, veterans, and survivors of domestic violence. He is fascinated with the immigrant and refugee communities’ propensity towards entrepreneurship and their ability to navigate traditional and nontraditional funding sources and access to startup capital.

As an adjunct Professor of Practice in the Entrepreneurship and Emerging Enterprises department, El-Java is also the director of the South Side Innovation Center (SSIC), a business incubator and small business service center in the City of Syracuse, which houses 30 resident clients in its’ 60,000 square foot facility and provides consulting services to another 350 unique small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs per year. In 2012, El-Java was a recipient of the Minority Small Business Champion of the Year Award from the U.S. Small Business Administration, given for his commitment to and impact on entrepreneurship and his work at the SSIC.

In addition to teaching EEE 446, Minorities and Women in a Business, El-Java has been a key member of the EEE 467 Entrepreneurial Consulting course, as a guest lecturer and in supplying small businesses for the students to consult. He has co-published articles about inclusive Entrepreneurship consulting, Storytelling in Entrepreneurial Education, and New Venture Financing.

El-Java is also the owner and chief operator of Excel Martial Arts Training Center, LLC, a martial arts and fitness center established in Syracuse, NY since 2009.

Samantha is the Administrative Assistant at the South Side Innovation Center (SSIC), a project of the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University. She is primarily responsible for overseeing the day-to-day functions at the SSIC, supporting resident clients, maintaining the facility, and coordinating entrepreneurial events.

Samantha coordinates activities related to the New York State Entrepreneurial Assistance Program such as client enrollment and tracking of client progress. The SSIC works with as many as 300 program clients per year through business consulting and classes. She also serves as the liaison between the SSIC and Syracuse University’s Falcone Center for Entrepreneurship.