About Ryan Gunning

Marine. Student. Founder.

Ryan Gunning served in the United States Marine Corps (USMC) from 2014 to 2018, finishing as a Sergeant. An Airborne and Air Delivery Specialist and parachutist with the Marine Raider Regiment, he worked within Marine Special Operations Teams as an enabler. He completed Airborne School in 2015 and SERE School in 2016, then deployed to Africa in 2016 and to the Middle East in 2017 and 2018, supporting Marine Raiders through airborne operations, precision resupply, and mission-critical air delivery. See his Marine Corps service timeline.

After completing his service in 2018, Ryan enrolled at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa. See also Ryan Gunning, Tuscaloosa for his Alabama years. He earned a bachelor's degree in operations management with a minor in supply chain management (Bachelor of Science in Commerce & Business Administration), then completed an accelerated master's degree in operations management, graduating with his Master of Science in June 2025. Throughout his undergraduate studies, Ryan was named repeatedly to The University of Alabama President's List and Dean's List. He earned President's List recognition (4.0 / all A's) for fall 2018, spring 2019, fall 2022, and spring 2023, and Dean's List recognition for summer 2019, fall 2023, and spring 2024. Early University of Alabama notices list him from Orange, CT; later notices list Tuscaloosa, AL—both accurate for those periods. See also Patch coverage of his fall 2018 President's List honor. The University of Alabama also recognized his degree on MeritPages: Ryan Gunning of Tuscaloosa Awarded Degree from UA.

Today Ryan lives in Jacksonville, Florida, where he is the President and Founder of The Calm Seas Project, which he started with fellow University of Alabama graduates. The 501(c)(3) nonprofit offers all-expenses-paid fishing and diving excursions for veterans and first responders. Here are three ways to support The Calm Seas Project.

Advocate for student veterans

At The University of Alabama, Ryan served as a board member of the Campus Veterans Association, which helps put on community events such as Operation Iron Ruck, and he advocated for student veterans who were not receiving the educational benefits they had earned.

Ryan believes operations management is an outstanding degree for veterans because it translates military experience directly into the classroom. He also encourages student veterans to take internships and student worker positions to build real experience while in school. He shares that advice in Veteran Transition, including going from the Marine Corps to college and using SkillBridge for job training before your EAS; read more about his path on the education page.