Captain Elizabeth Simmons, LP.D is the Vice President of External Affairs encompassing both the Enrollment Management and Advancement departments at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. She is responsible for the planning, implementation, and evaluation of short and long range strategies, goals, and objectives for the Office of Enrollment while managing relationships with the Academy’s external stakeholders at the local, state, and federal level.
A 1997 Marine Safety and Environmental Protection (MSEP) graduate of Massachusetts Maritime Academy, she worked in both the environmental and human resources fields before coming back to the academy in 2002. Since returning, she has succeeded in increasing women and minority enrollment while exceeding the strategic goals of growing the overall student population. Elizabeth has earned a masters in facilities engineering, holds a doctorate degree in law and policy from Northeastern University and enjoys volunteering and giving back to multiple community organizations.
Currently she is the Women’s International Shipping and Trading Association (WISTA) USA New England Chapter President, immediate past President and Board Chair for Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts, serves on the Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School Steam Engineering Advisory Board, and is a member of Congressman Keating’s Service Academy Nomination Committee. Elizabeth is proud to serve as a mentor and role model in promoting women in the maritime and associated trades.
A native of Yarmouth, Massachusetts Elizabeth grew up sailing the waters of Lewis Bay in iconic Beetle Cats and Cape Cod Knockabouts. Currently, Elizabeth lives in Onset, MA.
Bill Straus is a former member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from the town of Mattapoisett. He served in the House from 1993 through 2024. He did not run for re-election in 2024. He worked on a number of legislative committees during that time including as House Chair of Environment and Natural Resources from 2009 to 2010, and House Chair of Transportation from 2011 through 2024.
Bill has held a number of other public positions. From 2011 through 2024 he was co-chair of the UMass Amherst Oversight Board for the Cranberry Research station in Wareham. He was a public member of the Massachusetts Hazardous Waste Facility Site Safety Council pursuant to chapter 21D from 1987 through 1992, a member of the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission from 1989 through 1992, and an Assistant District Attorney in Bristol County from 1982 through 1988.
From 2006 through 2016 he was an Adjunct Lecturer at the Boston University Law School. He was engaged in the private practice of law with an office in New Bedford until 2021.
Bill Straus received a BA from Middlebury College, his law degree from the Georgetown University Law Center, and a Masters of Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School.
