SUNY Maritime Inaugurates 11th President

SUNY Maritime College inaugurated Rear Adm. Michael A. Alfultis, Ph.D. as its 11th president on Friday, November 7 in the campus’ new Maritime Academic Center.

Many prestigious guests attended the presidential inauguration including SUNY Chancellor Nancy Zimpher, federal Maritime Administration leader Paul “Chip” Jaenichen, and ABS Chairman Christopher Wiernicki.

With more than 20 years of undergraduate teaching experience and 13 years of progressive academic administrative responsibility at both military and civilian institutions of higher education, Alfultis brings a uniquely diverse background to the presidency at Fort Schuyler.  His background includes service as an operations officer and navigator on a U.S. Coast Guard cutter; maritime safety and security; Coast Guard Academy faculty member and academic department chair; and senior administrator at a flagship university.

Throughout his career in academia, Dr. Alfultis has supervised extensive cadet research across Coast Guard mission areas, as well as several federal, state, and non-profit agencies.  He provided critical leadership to promoting and ensuring academic quality through institutional accreditation efforts at both the Coast Guard Academy and at the University of Connecticut.  Those efforts helped him to better understand the value of an open and transparent self-assessment process that involves all constituents, to ensure academic quality.