"My Dad did not have the opportunity to attend college. After he graduated from high school, his first job was as a rivet thrower building the USS Iowa in 1940 which is now a living memorial in the port of San Pedro, CA. The Army after WWII offered him a full scholarship to Ohio State pre-dental program but he chose to stay at home to financially support his parents. My Dad made sure my brother and I went to college. I would like to pay appreciation to my father’s sacrifice by being a part of this program."
Jay is a graduate of Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management with dual degrees in Marketing and Finance. Currently, Jay Kramer is President of Network Storage Advisors, a marketing consulting firm. Jay is a world recognized technology consultant, industry analyst and delivers a wide range of marketing services to companies in the tech industry. He has personally trained over 2000 professionals on storage networking technologies, and he currently works with leading and emerging data storage product companies worldwide. Jay has been a Vice President of Worldwide Marketing and Product Management for many data storage companies including Sepaton (acquired by Hitachi Data Systems), Astute Networks, iStor Networks, Infinity I/O, and Creative Design Solutions (acquired by Seagate). He also had two decades of experience leading marketing, business development and strategic planning at Unisys.
An industry leader, he has served on the Board of Directors of the Fibre Channel Industry Association (FCIA) and was one of the Founders of the Flash Memory Summit which is the largest memory and storage industry conference worldwide.
Jay plays clarinet and sax and is part of a musical family. Jay serves on the Board of Directors of the Laguna Community Concert Band and the Laguna Beach Arts Alliance.
“A quality education with mentors along the way to guide our next generation is the foundation for success in all aspects of life. BRDG’s focus on providing first generation college students with an incredible support network of coaches and advisors that can help guide their journey is something very special. I am excited to be a part of the BRDG program."