State University of New York Maritime College
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SUNY Maritime College
| Mission | To prepare graduates for careers in the maritime industry on shore and at sea. |
|---|---|
| Established | 1874 |
| Official name | Maritime College |
| University | State University of New York |
| School type | State Merchant Marine Academy |
| President | Vice Admiral John W. Craine Jr., USN (ret.) |
| Regimental Cadets | 905 |
| Non-Regimental Students | 256 |
| Graduate Students | 128 |
| Location | Throggs Neck, Bronx, NY, USA |
SUNY Maritime College is located in the Bronx, New York City in historic Fort Schuyler on the Throggs Neck peninsula where the East River meets Long Island Sound. Founded in 1874, the SUNY Maritime College was the first college of its kind (federally approved, offering commercial nautical instruction) to be founded in the United States.
The school offers Bachelor of Engineering degrees in electrical, facilities, marine, and mechanical engineering; marine electrical and electronic systems; and naval architecture. It offers the Bachelor of Science degree in business administration/marine transportation, general business and commerce (with a humanities concentration), general engineering, international transportation and trade, marine environmental science (with a meteorology or oceanography concentration), and marine operations. All bachelor's degree programs may be combined with preparation for the professional license as a United States Merchant Marine Officer. The College also offers a master's degree in International Transportation Management, as well as several graduate certificate programs.
Most of the degree programs may be completed while concurrently preparing for the United States Merchant Marine officer's license as a third mate or third assistant engineer. Additionally, SUNY Maritime College has the only United States Navy/United States Marine Corps Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) program in the metropolitan New York City area, which prepares enrollees for commissioned officer positions in the US Navy and US Marine Corps.
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[edit] Regiment of Cadets
The undergraduate student body at the Maritime College is organized into a Regiment of Cadets. The Regiment is a military-style organization and is governed by a set of Rules and Regulations similar to that of the US federal service academies. The Regiment is led by cadet officers assisted by professional personnel of the Office of the Commandant of Cadets.
[edit] History
The State University of New York Maritime College's history began over 130 years ago. In response to industry demand, more Americans were being encouraged to enter maritime careers. The Governor of New York applied for a training ship and, on December 14, 1874, the USS St. Mary's arrived in New York harbor and became the home of the first commercial maritime institution in the United States. The initial 26 students aboard the St. Mary's, known then as the New York Nautical School, became the first class of what has evolved into the State University of New York Maritime College.
As the school prospered, it became a land-based, degree-granting college, finding a permanent home in 1934 at the Maritime College's present Throggs Neck campus. One of Franklin D. Roosevelt's last acts as governor or New York State was to sign the act turning Fort Schuyler and the Throggs Neck peninsula over to what was then the New York State Merchant Marine Academy for use as a shore-based facility of higher education. The College is one of the original institutions incorporated into the State University of New York system in 1948 and was the first of its kind to enroll women in 1974.
[edit] At Sea
The College's primary ship, Empire State VI is a 565 foot (172.2 m) vessel driven by a 17,160 horsepower (13 MW) steam turbine engine. Originally built as the SS Oregon, a break-bulk cargo freighter for States Lines, it was converted by the Maritime Administration and delivered to the College for use as a training ship in 1990. The Empire State is host to cadet watches and work parties during the academic year, and departs each May with the college's cadets on board for "Summer Sea Term," a two-month training voyage. Athens, Dublin, Barbados, Antwerp, Naples, Barcelona, Genoa, London, Talinn, Istanbul, Dubrovnik, Split, Kiel, and Copenhagenare some of the recent ports of call for the Empire State VI. During the Summer Sea Term cadets are split into Deck and Engineering disciplines, which are further partitioned into three divisions each. These divisions form the basis of shipboard life during Summer Sea Term, and follow a rotating schedule of work, classes, and watchstanding. Cadets must complete three Sea Terms, each with progressively more responsibilities and higher expectations. On Third Class 'cruise,' the first of three, the cadets are given their first exposure to the rigors and requirements of shipboard life. They perform basic tasks and are trained in the most fundamental aspects of their respective disciplines. By the end of their First Class 'cruise,' the last they are required to complete, the cadets are expected to be able to competently perform most of the routine duties of a Third Mate or Third Assistant Engineer on watch.
In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the Empire State VI was mobilized on September 8, 2005, to provide berthing for up to 700 ConocoPhillips employees and National Guardsmen. The ship was readied for departure in record time, and remained in Bel Chasse, Louisiana for six months before returning to her berth at the college on March 8, 2006. The crew and the College were awarded a commendation for their service from the Maritime Administration.
The Empire State VI is the only registered troopship maintained as part of the US Navy's Ready Reserve Force, prefixed the T-AP 1001. The Empire State VI was also activated in 1994 to transport American soldiers home from Mogadishu, Somalia, the first time a troopship was used to transport soldiers since 1968 in Vietnam.
The college also "operates" the former USNS Stalwart. The vessel is inoperable since the engines do not work and the vessel was nearly gutted after its decommissioning as a Naval vessel. Funding has yet to be acquired to make the necessary repairs, and the vessel has remained moored at the college pier since arriving there under tow in May 2004.
[edit] Athletics
The college fields 19 varsity teams ("The Privateers") in five different conferences, including football, baseball, basketball, lacrosse, swimming, softball, soccer, volleyball, cross-country running, rugby union, rifle and pistol. The college has attained national prominence in crew and sailing.
[edit] Class of 2006
SUNY Maritime College boasts 100% career placement within three months of graduation. In the class of 2006, 40% of graduates took sea-going jobs, 23% took shore-side jobs within the maritime industry, 19% were commissioned into the Armed Forces, 12% went into a non-maritime industry, and 6% continued on to graduate school.
The average starting salary for graduates with the class of 2006 was over $57,000. This ranks SUNY Maritime College graduates among the highest paid college graduates in the country, above those from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University, or the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Joseph Hazelwood, Master of the Exxon Valdez
- Scott J. Kelly, NASA astronaut
- Commodore Leroy J. Alexanderson, the last Master of SS United States
- Edward Villella, dancer and choreographer.
- Gary Jobson, Class of 1973, America's Cup tactician in 1977 for Ted Turner. Self-proclaimed pre-eminent ambassador for sailing in the U.S. [1]
- Commander Kevin Mannix, United States Navy, Class of 1986, Flight Leader/Commanding Officer, Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Team. CDR Mannix assumed command of the Blue Angels in November 2006. [2]
[edit] Notable attendees
- Geraldo Rivera (1961–1963), an American television journalist and former talk show host.[3] [4]
- Louis E. Willett, Private First Class, U.S. Army, Recipient Medal of Honor [5]
[edit] External links
- SUNY Maritime College
- Fort Schuyler Press (the publication unit of SUNY Maritime College)
- ConocoPhillips Press Release Regarding the Maritime College
- gCaptain.com, A web site for Master Mariners run by an Alumni.
- Fort Schuyler Maritime Alumni Association
[edit] References
- http://www.sunymaritime.edu/zpt/z04/z0400.makka?z=966
- http://www.sunymaritime.edu/zpt/z02/z0200.makka?z=571
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