330.941.1886
APEX THROUGH THE YEARS

APEX Through the Years

Since 1985, APEX Accelerators have been serving companies across the nation. Each APEX is unique. Each APEX has a story to tell. This is the story of Ohio APEX Accelerator at YSU.

1985
4
1985

PTAC Created

Congress authorized the creation of the PTAC program, now known APEX Accelerators, paving the way for Centers to be established nationwide. With fervent congressional support, a regional APEX Accelerators was established in the heart of Youngstown to provide assistance to companies throughout the Mahoning Valley. 

2016
4
2016

Partnership with YSU

Mahoning Valley PTAC, now known as APEX Accelerators, partners with the Ohio SBDC at YSU. This partnership allowed APEX Accelerators to leverage the education and skills of interns throughout the counseling process while providing them with real-world educational opportunities. This partnership also paved the way for the evolution of the Ohio APEX Accelerator at YSU.
2023
4
2023

Rebranding

In 2023, PTAC rebranded and transitioned its name to Ohio APEX Accelerator at YSU to better reflect its mission of accelerating innovation, fostering ingenuity, and establishing resilient and diverse supply chains.

APEX Accelerators

As the world of government contracting evolves, so, too, must APEX Accelerators evolve to better assist their clients. That natural evolution led to a new APEX Accelerators being created and hosted at YSU to provide assistance to companies throughout Trumbull, Mahoning, and Columbiana Counties. Located in the Williamson College of Business Administration alongside the Ohio SBDC & EAN at YSU, the Ohio APEX Accelerator at YSU provides the highest quality assistance to both established government contractors and those companies who are new to the government marketplace.

Our 2021 Community Impact

Awarding Agencies

Award Actions

Dollars in Awards

%

State & Local Awards

%

Federal Awards

Our Team

Rich Delisio

Procurement Consultant
Rich Delisio has served in the Ohio APEX Accelerator at YSU since 2009, and recently returned to Youngstown State University (YSU) to serve the Mahoning Valley in government contracting counseling. The APEX Accelerators program emphasizes the importance of developing business relationships and resources to understand and successfully obtain contracts in public procurement.

Rich received both his MBA and BSBA from Youngstown State University. Rich has over 25 years of Procurement experience, twelve of which he directed the Material Management (Purchasing) Department at YSU. Rich went from managing the public funds to working with great companies across Northeast Ohio to secure federal, state and local contract dollars. Rich’s campus office is located at Williamson Hall in Suite 1151 and can be reached at 330-941-1886 or radelisio@ysu.edu.

Scot Loveland

Director, Ohio APEX Accelerator at YSU

Scot Loveland is a graduate of the University of Mount Union and the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA. After serving in the Army and other government branches as an intelligence specialist, Scot turned his attention to the private sector. Having worked much of his professional life in small business, Scot was typically tasked with leading and implementing aggressive growth strategies. This mindset was useful when Scot found himself tasked as a ground-level project manager on a $100 million training contract vehicle for Special Operations Command. He followed this up as a government contracting program manger for a local manufacturer.

As a business management consultant, and a former client of the Ohio APEX Accelerator at YSU, Scot is uniquely equipped to aid private entities looking to initiate or expand relations with the federal and state governments. Scot’s campus office is located at Williamson Hall in Suite 1151 and can be reached at 330-941-2146 or swloveland@ysu.edu.

Beeghly Fellows

Part of government contracting is having the right business, but the other part is having the right team. The Ohio APEX Accelerator at YSU expert counselors will assist businesses with government contracting needs from researching viability for your products and services to renewing registrations and certifications. The Ohio APEX Accelerator at YSU is partnered with the Williamson College of Business Administration, allowing us to leverage the education, talent, and experience of the students to provide more specialized client assistance.