The Navy Leaguer - 2008 Corporate Membership Directory

U.S. NAVY

A Merchant Mariner on the Military Sealift Command fleet replenishment oiler USNS Tippecanoe waits to receive a line from the guided-missile cruiser USS Shiloh in the Pacific Ocean April 24. In an effort to stem the shortage of U.S. maritime workers, industry and government are working together to offer more education and training programs, and provide greater exposure to maritime career opportunities to students.

According to teacher Rick Nichols, one of his former students is making $6,000 a month working on an MSC ship based in Sasebo, Japan.

“These kids are making way more money than they’d be making around here,” he said.

The looming shortage of mariners has gained attention in Washington. At an Oct. 17 hearing of his subcommittee, Cummings elaborated on some of the challenges in increasing the number of mariners.

“No longer is a sailor’s life necessarily one of adventure, offering a young person a chance to learn about sailing through on-the-job experiences at sea while occasionally spending weeks exploring port cities around the world,” he said. “Deadlines and cost margins are tight, and ships sail with the fewest possible number of crew members, who are expected to fulfill multiple duties while keeping regular watches and who usually spend no more than a few hours in any port.”

Arthur H. Sulzer, the chair of the Baltimore conference and a board member of the Maritime Academy Charter School in Philadelphia, underscored Cummings’ remarks during the same hearing.

“Today’s mariner needs to be highly trained, needs to be dedicated and motivated, and this applies to all positions onboard ships, not just the master,” he said.

Sulzer added that many of the new security requirements, particularly in the post-9/11 world, have cut off many of the traditional sources of mariners, namely immigrants from Africa and Asia.

He said a new influx of potential mariners could come “from our underserved urban students in America’s cities, which can use this program as an opportunity to escape poverty and to find their ways to good, meaningful careers.

“That’s what I think the maritime high school movement is about,” he said, adding that it is important to start offering the maritime courses as early as possible in a child’s education.

One of the problems, Sulzer noted, is that companies will try to recruit 12th graders. But at that point, he said, “you might as well tell them you want them to be a Chinese language specialist.”

The Maritime Administration began addressing the shortage of mariners in 2001, when it co-sponsored a conference with the Coast Guard titled “Maritime Careers: Creating an Action Plan for Recruiting and Retaining American Mariners.” Held at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, N. Y., the conference planted the seeds for starting up maritime schools.

“Through this initiative, we hope to get young men and women familiar with the opportunities that exist in the maritime industry, as well as the sea services,” Sean T. Connaughton, the maritime administrator, told Seapower in an e-mail. “We hope that this will become a future source of mariners, Sailors and Coast Guardsmen.”

Sulzer, a lifelong mariner, became involved in maritime education issues in 2003, when the Maritime Academy Charter School opened in Philadelphia. That school started with 125 students and now has 700, with a waiting list of 300, he said.

The schools often focus on different aspects of the maritime industry, but all share the goal of exposing students to careers at sea or in port and improving their overall academic performance should they decide to pursue another career.