Glen Paine News

On August 1, Interim Director of MITAGS, Mike Rodriguez, will be returning to his position as a part-time MITAGS faculty member."Working as I have with everyone at MITAGS has been a great experience for me,” Rodriguez said. “The MITAGS West team are innovative. Our conference team is smart and determined. Our operations folks just make it happen every day. Our instructors are knowledgeable and dedicated. The hotel and food service staff are good, hard-working folks who lay the foundation for everything we do here.

On behalf of the MM&P MATES Program, The Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and Maritime Conference Center (MCC) announce the appointment of Eric Friend as the new executive director.“The trustees’ decision to select Friend as the next executive director has made the transition much easier. Friend has been running the Academic Division for several years, and has been involved in most major decisions,” said Glen Paine, former executive director, now retired. “Eric is smart, dedicated, and respected by the trustees, students, and industry.

In 2001, George Burkley, a maritime educator, wrote a look-ahead article for Maritime Reporter and Engineering News, presenting the benefits and real-world payoffs from using simulators in maritime education. In the late 1990s, new tech and software advances were creating scenario programs that moved a student closer and closer to the realities demanded by, well, reality. “The future is here, and we are ready to simulate it,” Burkley concluded.Burkley is now executive director at the Maritime Pilots Institute in Covington, La.

Glen Paine, President, Maritime Industries Academy Foundation (MIAF) announced that the Steamship Trade Association of  Baltimore Charitable Legacy, Inc. donated $10,000 to the MIAF non-profit charity, which was setup to support Baltimore’s only maritime high school. This maritime charity was founded by Mr. Mark Montgomery, CEO, Ports America Chesapeake, and Mr. Michael Angelos, President, Steamship Trade Association of Baltimore. In a correspondence to Legacy Inc., Glen Paine said, “Since its inception in 2009, the Maritime Industries Academy Advisory Board and Foundation have assisted in the relocation of the MIA and the implementation of a maritime curriculum for ninth grade. It has also helped establish a Junior Naval Officer Training Corps and Honor Guard.

The Ship Operations Cooperative Program (SOCP) invites maritime industry representatives to attend its Summer 2010 meeting to be held at the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) in Linthicum Heights, Md., September 8-9, 2010. There are no membership requirements to attend. This public session will provide maritime professionals, labor unions, seafarers, training institutions and regulatory representatives the opportunity to participate in a working group format focusing on the development of performance measures which are used to assess mariner competencies listed in the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW), 1978, as amended in 1995, and again in June 2010.

The Ship Operations Cooperative Program (SOCP) invites maritime industry representatives to attend and take part in our Summer 2010 meeting scheduled to be held September 8-9, 2010 at the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) in Linthicum Heights, MD. This public session will be designed to provide maritime professionals, labor unions, seafarers, training institutions and regulatory representatives the opportunity to participate in a working group format focusing on the development of performance measures which are used to assess mariner competencies listed in the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW), 1978, as amended in 1995, and again in June 2010.

MITAGS provides ship pilots, maritime organizations and government employees with small arms training, employee awareness, security assessment, security management, chemical, biological, and radiological training for enhanced public and organizational safety and security. Glen Paine, executive director of the Maritime Institute of Technology & Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and Pacific Northwest Maritime Institute (PMI) Seattle, Washington announced that its small arms and other security enhancement training programs are now open to all companies and organizations. "The attack on the United States on September 11, 2001 has created a demand for enhanced security for American citizens, maritime organizations and government officials.

The Kings Point Alumni Foundation Board of Directors will bestow upon two (2) MITAGS’ directors, the current incumbent Glen Paine (’78), and his predecessor, Charles (Chuck) Pillsbury (’68), the Outstanding Professional Achievement Award at the annual Alumni Banquet Dinner. This award is made to alumni of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy or the Cadet Corps on any of their five-year anniversaries. The award is presented to those, who, in the judgment of the Alumni Awards Committee, “best exemplify the finest tradition of the Corps-Acta-Non Verba” by obtaining personal achievement in their chosen field and thus lending honor and prestige to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Mr.

Glen Paine, Executive Director of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and the Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI) announced today that MITAGS has been awarded the U.S. Coast Guard five-year firm, fixed price Gas Carrier Inspection course. The two-week Gas Carrier course, which has been approved by the U.S. Coast Guard, provides familiarization in Gas Carrier theory with a basic understanding of thermodynamics, chemistry of cargo, and safety and health hazards. Fire fighting theory and liquid and vapor leak procedures are extensively reviewed. U.S.

Glen Paine, Executive Director of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) in Baltimore, Maryland and the Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI) in Seattle, Washington, announced today that MITAGS and PMI have implemented an innovative program, with reduced tuition and hotel costs, to assist professional mariners seeking license advancement to Chief Mate/Master (CMM). The Institutes now offer one of the fastest, most versatile, and cost-effective routes for mariners to obtain their CMM licenses. The MITAGS/PMI program, which covers all U.S. Coast Guard requirements, is only twelve (12) weeks in duration. Forty-one (41) of the fifty-three (53) required assessments may be completed during these courses.

Glen Paine, Executive Director of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS), announced that MITAGS will host a celebratory Dinner-Dance evening honoring the Merchant Marine Veterans of World War II, the evening before the dedication of the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. on May 29, 2004. The May 28, 2004, Dinner-Dance event will be held on MITAGS’ campus in Linthicum Heights, Maryland. The event is scheduled to begin at 6:00PM, with music of the 1940s era being performed by The Radio King Orchestra at 7:00PM. Vice Admiral Gordon S. Holder (USN), Director of Logistics (J-4), Joint Chief of Staff- Pentagon, and former Director of the Military Sealift Command, will be the guest speaker.

Glen Paine, Executive Director of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and the Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI), announced the development of specific programs to assist maritime personnel in meeting the new Maritime Transportation Security Act (MTSA) and International Ship and Port Security (ISPS) Code security regulations. Companion seminars have also been developed to provide additional knowledge in specific subject areas. This comprehensive training program is designed for personnel assigned to port, facility, company, or ship security officer responsibilities. The program includes detailed training and instruction in the development of security assessments, plans, and drills.

June 11, 2004 was a very big day for the advancement of maritime training as the Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI) introduced its full mission simulator in a new 15,000 sq. ft. building in Seattle, Wash. Gregg Trunnell, PMI's director set the tone for the day when he said during dedication remarks, "Oceangoing vessels are not simple pieces of equipment and the days of cabin boys and shanghaied crew members are over. Trunnell also noted that maritime schools are few and far between and often students had to travel to a number of states to get a single certification. "With the opening of this new facility, those days are gone forever for mariners in the Pacific northwest," Trunnell noted.

Glen Paine, Executive Director of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and the Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI), has announced that Captain Robert J. Becker has joined MITAGS as the Academic Business Development Manager. Captain Becker is responsible for establishing market strategies, enhancing the client base, developing and managing proposals and contracts, evaluating client requirements to improve quality of service, measuring the effectiveness of marketing strategies, maintaining a business relationship with current clients, and coordinating all marketing and training programs with the academic department heads. “Bob is a seasoned professional and a highly experienced ship master,” said Glen Paine.

Glen Paine, Executive Director of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and the Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI), has announced that Captain Robert J. Becker has joined MITAGS as the Academic Business Development Manager. Captain Becker is responsible for establishing market strategies, enhancing the client base, developing and managing proposals and contracts, evaluating client requirements to improve quality of service, measuring the effectiveness of marketing strategies, maintaining a business relationship with current clients, and coordinating all marketing and training programs with the academic department heads. “Bob is a seasoned professional and a highly experienced ship master,” said Glen Paine.

Over the past six decades, there have been rapid developments in technology and marine operations. These have brought about significant changes in maritime education and training. Six decades ago, maritime education and training was a relatively straightforward process. Upon entry into the merchant marine, an individual served mandatory periods of minimum sea service between progressive grades of license examinations that were conducted by the appropriate licensing authority. Sea service provided the bulk of required practical experience and formed the basis for further instruction ashore. Long sea voyages, long turn-around times, large crews, and extensive apprenticeship and cadet programs all contributed to individuals learning the required practical skills while at sea.

Glen Paine, Executive Director of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate (MITAGS) and Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI), has announced that the United States Navy has certified the institute as a Non-Traditional Training Site. MITAGS met the rigidly high standards of the Navy and has been granted a much wider range of formal training for its personnel. To gain formal certification, MITAGS had to meet or exceed U.S. Navy standards in Instructional Management, Curriculum Management, Evaluation Management and Student Management. The MITAGS Non-Traditional Training Site (NTTS) Certifications means that the institute will become an external source for naval training. MITAGS went through a formal inspection process that verified its conformance to standards and examined its facilities.

MITAGS will host the national conference, “Maritime Careers: Implementing the Action Plans for Recruiting and Retaining Mariners” at Linthicum Heights Campus on May 1-2, 2002. Glen Paine, executive director, Maritime Institute of Technology & Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI), Seattle, Wash., announced that MITAGS would host a national conference for national consensus on mariner recruitment and retention at its Linthicum Heights campus on May 1 and May 2, 2002. The American Merchant Marine has been impacted by a critical loss of professional mariners in recent years. The aim of this conference is to build a national consensus and plan that will project a positive image of mariners and create an appreciative awareness of the maritime industry.

Today, we live in a new era of global maritime standards, with the advent of ISO, ISM, and STCW-95. The industry has embraced these standards as mechanisms to ensure that corporate policy, company operational procedures, and mariners sailing on the open seas are measured and certified. Old internal practices have been done away with, and the new standard within the industry is to certify compliance in companies and aboard ships. At the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI), it is our business to train professional mariners. Our curriculum has been structured to exceed the standards of STCW and to provide mariners with the most realistic and technically advanced training available.

Glen Paine, Executive Director, Maritime Institute of Technology & Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI), Seattle, Washington announced that MITAGS has designed courses for ship crews on environmental standards, care, and protection. Today, ship operators are coming under intense scrutiny for their role in environmental pollution. These operational mishaps can lead to substantial government fines and costly environmental litigation. Both can be expensive and onerous to ship operating companies financial and operational well being. MITAGS offers to provide this course, the length of which can be customized to meet organizational requirements, on its ship or at their facilities.

Glen Paine, Executive Director of the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS), announced the successful completion of MITAGS’ annual Det Norske Veritas (DNV) audit. In 1997, MITAGS earned the distinction of being the first maritime training institution in the United States, and the second in the world, to be certified by DNV under their Maritime Training and Simulator Center Classification Rules. Under these rules, DNV determined that the MITAGS training management system complies with national and international training management requirements, including elements of the ISO 9000 classification series. To maintain this certification, a rigorous review is conducted by DNV on a yearly basis. During the course of this inspection, Mr.

The Department of Homeland Security has published an interim rule in the Federal Register and will issue its final rule on November 25, 2003. The rule is intended to implement strong Port State Control measures to aggressively enforce these regulations, including tracking the performance of all owners, operators, port facility managers, flag administrators and recognized security organizations. The MITAGS/PMI Security Officer Training incorporates this Interim Final Rule, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) amendments that contain the International Ship and Port Security Code (ISPS Code), which comes into effect in July, 2004, and the U.S. Coast Guard NVIC 10-02. The Coast Guard has concluded that they will impose their new requirements on many U.S.

Glen Paine, Executive Director, the Maritime Institute of Technology & Graduate Studies (MITAGS) and Pacific Maritime Institute (PMI) has announced that a new training course for Ship Security Officer (SSO) will be available for all interested mariners and company representatives. There will be two one-week sessions, the first beginning on February 3rd and the second beginning on February 10th, 2003. These sessions will be some of the first SSO training opportunities offered to the public and will be presented in a “beta” format. Feedback from attendees will be utilized to finalize course materials and content, which will be submitted to the U.S. Coast Guard as a proposed model course. Piracy and terrorist attacks are increasing against commercial shipping worldwide.