Zukunft to Keynote Top U.S. Maritime Conference
Admiral Paul Zukunft, Commandant of the United States Coast Guard, will give the opening keynote address at the 2015 North American World Maritime Day (NAWMD) conference.
The conference is being held October 5-7, 2015 at the Maritime Institute for Technology and Graduate Studies located just outside Baltimore, Maryland.
The title of this year’s NAWMD is Maritime Education & Training Summit - Collaboration for Industry’s Future, Securing Maritime’s 21st Century Workforce, following the IMO’s theme for 2015.
The conference is a joint effort among several organizations that believe in and support maritime education: SUNY Maritime College, Ship Operations Cooperative Program (SOCP), North American Marine Environment Protection Association (NAMEPA), and the Maritime for Primary and Secondary Education Coalition (MPSEC).
The 2015 North American World Maritime Day Conference will feature individual speakers, plenary sessions and a series of workshops over a two day period. The sessions will run along three tracks of interest: educators, industry and administrators. This will allow attendees to participate in the sessions that interest them most.
Topics will include mission maritime/intermodal primary and secondary school programs, North American labor developing a 21st century workforce, as well as the workshops covering career tech programs, military transition to maritime employment, community organization support, STEM education programs, post-secondary marine/maritime education and the future workforce needs and trends.
As well as Admiral Zukunft, speakers include the Honorable Tim Meisner of Transport Canada; Maritime Administrator Paul “Chip” Jaenichen; RADM Fred Kenney, Director of Legal and External Affairs at IMO and RADM James Watson (USCG, Ret.) of the American Bureau of Shipping.
“We are pleased by the quality of the program and speakers,” stated RADM Michael Alfultis, President of SUNY Maritime College and Conference Co-Chairman. “This will advance the awareness and professionalism of maritime education in North America.”
Co-Chairman Carleen Lyden-Kluss of NAMEPA added, “Education and training in maritime offers high quality jobs and a future for today’s youth that is sustainable. We need to deploy strategies to engage them in order to secure our industry’s future.”
The last conference to promote and support American maritime education was the 2008 Maritime and Intermodal Education for Primary and Secondary Schools in America conference sponsored by the Ship Operations Cooperative Program, observed SOCP President and Conference Co-Chairman Patricia Finsterbush. “The SOCP has a history of support and commitment to maritime education as it results in qualified mariners for our members’ fleets.”
Since that time, maritime/marine schools have grown to over 45 across North America and student achievement has steadily improved. “It is time to come together once again to promote the maritime/marine schools and share their success,” said Dr Arthur Sulzer, Conference Co-Chairman and head of the MPSEC.
Additional speakers expected include Congressman Elijah Cummings (MD- 17th District); RADM Thomas K. Shannon USN, Commander Military Sealift Command; Captain Don Markus, President Masters Mates & Pilots; Paul Doell, President American Maritime Officers; Mike Sacco, President Seafarers International Union; Marshall Ainley, President of Marine Engineers Benevolent Association (MEBA); and Captain Michael Rodriguez USN, Deputy Maritime Administrator.
Registration is now open at 2015 North American World Maritime Day. For more information, or to become a sponsor, contact Carleen Lyden-Kluss (+203 255 4686 or [email protected]) or Art Sulzer (+484 459 7726 or [email protected].