Sea Term 2009: Captain's Blog

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January 2009 S M T W Th F S         1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Feb 2009

Saturday 31 January

0830 ET/1330 GMT Position
In Port, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Pier One - West side
USTS Kennedy's updated track: Sailwx Track

Air Temperature 78 F
Sea Temperature 72 F
Sea State
Barometric Pressure 30.04" Hg and rising
Wind Variable @ 3 kts
Partly cloudy. Visibility 10 miles.

Division I Watch
Division II Liberty
Division III Liberty
Division IV Liberty

"I do esteem individual liberty above everything. What is a nation for, but to secure the maximum of liberty to every individual? What do you think a nation is?-a big business concern?"
-D.H. Lawrence, author

"LIBERTY HAS BEEN GRANTED"
by Cadet 1/C Peter Beuth

Those famous four words rang out several times today as Captain Rozak granted liberty to officers and crew, then first class cadets, third class, and finally fourth class. The liberty calls began around 0900, and were finished by around 1030, with cadets of all classes virtually racing down the gangway. With temperatures in the 80's most cadets headed for the numerous beaches in the area, including the beaches in El Condado, and at "la ocho," so called because it is the eighth stop on the San Juan bus route. We weren't sure the weather was going to be so nice because at 0600 this morning as we were called out for mooring stations we had to contend with several squalls that left a few of us drenched. No worries, forty five minutes later the sun rose, broke through the clouds, and off to our starboard side a rainbow formed, welcoming us to Puerto Rico as we passed by the Del Morro castle on our way into San Juan Bay. What a fine start to our four days in Puerto Rico. As I write this, the last of the freshmen are returning on board as their liberty expires for the night. Hopefully they have all made conscientious decisions today, but only time will tell.

Tours of the rainforest and on the catamarans begin tomorrow. The tours provide great, fun experiences while helping cadets keep out of trouble for at least part of the day. I will be joining about 35 others tomorrow on the El Yunque rainforest horseback riding expedition. I've heard great things, and I'll be sure to fill everybody in on my experiences.

At Sea with an Oceanographer
by 1/C Peter Beuth

Employed by Massachusetts Maritime Academy for fifteen years and currently in the midst of his eleventh Sea Term, Dr. Alan White has a vast amount of expertise as an oceanographer and marine biologist which he passes on to his students. As the head of the Marine Safety and Environmental Protection Department, Dr. White is actually in charge of two full academic programs. One such program that falls under the department is the Marine Safety and Environmental Protection (MSEP) major, the other being the Emergency Management major (EM). When asked what brought him from the field into a teaching career at Massachusetts Maritime Academy he said that, with his practical experience he felt that, "Teaching at a maritime school just makes sense." It was evident in speaking with him that he has a deep concern for our ocean environment and that he tries to convey his apprehension for our marine environment to not only his MSEP and EM students, but to Marine Transportation and Marine Engineering cadets as well since the ocean is "deck and engine's bread and butter."

On board TS Kennedy, Dr. White has developed an intensive two day course for the entire fourth class which is an especially good match for freshmen who have never been to sea. The program stresses the need to protect the ocean and includes such topics as fisheries management, marine resources, and plastic pollution. Day one is built around the Environmental Protection side of the major with courses such as Oil and Oil Spills; Plastic and Debris in the Ocean; MARPOL, OPA 90, and MSDs; Environmental Monitoring; and Marine Fisheries, a Global Problem. MARPOL deals with maritime pollution, OPA 90 is the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, and MSD's are Marine Sanitation Devices. Day two centers around the Marine Safety part of the major with courses including Personal Protective Equipment, Hazardous Materials, Hazardous Waste and Management, Environmental Health and Safety Audit (EHS), and What's going on miles below us. Freshmen will also be doing their own Environmental Health Audit of the ship as part of their two day training regimen. Recently many graduating cadets have been getting jobs in Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) including Jess Harlan who now works as an EHS officer for GE Nuclear, and approximately 15 other graduates who in the last couple of years took jobs as EHS officers on Royal Caribbean ships, and are currently making over $65,000 per year.

There are three senior MSEP cadets who have been working alongside Dr. White in preparing each one of these courses and then implementing them during this year's Sea Term. Environmental Operations Officers 1/C Rich Gioielli, 1/C Meghan Clifford, and 1/C Marc Sullivan's efforts have been crucial to the success of the MSEP program on board since teaching over three hundred freshmen during the month and a half at sea can be a daunting task. They have been especially important in the Marine Safety aspect of the freshmen MSEP program as their practical experience in the field as well as from their classes back at the academy have helped them to take on the task of teaching the second days classes with very little necessary oversight.

I asked Dr. White if there were any classes or training on board for the few upperclassmen who chose to work with freshmen on Sea Term instead of taking an internship in the field. He told me that they used to have Industrial Health and Safety classes but that, due to a lack of space on board TS Kennedy, only freshmen classes are now given. However, with renovations taking place and an increase in berthing and instructional space available for the next year, he is hopeful to be able to offer classes to any upper class MSEP cadets that come on Sea Term.

LINKS:
Official MMA Photography

Christiaan Conover Blog Page
Buzzards Bay Weather
MMA Parents Association

Departure Photos
Cape Cod Times Online Departure Photos
217 Photos of TS Kennedy's Arrival in Tampa

Should you have an emergency and need to contact someone at MMA regarding your cadet or a crew member, please contact Commander Stephen Kelleher:
Commander Stephen Kelleher
508-830-6485 (daytime)
508-364-6217 (Evenings/Weekends)
seaterm@maritime.edu

If Commander Kelleher is not available, you may contact me at any time:
Captain Allen Hansen
508-269-0925
ahansen@maritime.edu

Parting Shots...