As San Jacinto College News

Naval architecture, marine engineering and marine surveying firm The Shearer Group, Inc. (TSGI) announced it has hired Charles Slajus and Jacqueline Campbell.Slajus joined TSGI as a naval architect. He graduated from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor of Science in Engineering in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering. Over the course of his education, Slajus gained shipyard operations and composite manufacturing experience as an intern. He was also a Teaching Assistant for a marine power and energy course.Campbell rejoined TSGI as a Designer after working for TSGI from 2013-2019.

A new bill introduced in the U.S. aims to make available $200 million in grant funding for community and technical colleges offering training programs for maritime industry professions. The legislation H.R. 7456 was introduced by Congresswoman Sylvia R. Garcia (Texas-29) alongside Rep. Don Young (Alaska-At-Large), Rep. Anthony G. Brown (Md.-04), Rep. Brian Babin (Texas-36), and Rep. Steven Palazzo (Miss.-04).“Maritime industry jobs are a critical part of our nation’s economy. Yet research has shown that there may soon be a shortage of maritime industry workers,” said Congresswoman Garcia.

A Center of Excellence designation would allow San Jacinto College to expand maritime training. San Jacinto College is one step closer to having a Maritime Center of Excellence. The U.S. Senate recently voted to approve maritime workforce centers of excellence legislation as part of the FY 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). This follows a vote made by the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this year to approve the legislation. While there are slight differences between the House-passed maritime workforce centers of excellence provision and the Senate-passed provision…

A variety of U.S. Coast Guard-approved maritime training courses are being offered this spring at the San Jacinto College Maritime Technology and Training Center on the Maritime Campus in La Porte, Texas. These courses are open for companies looking to update their crews’ training and licensing and for individual mariners. The Center offers a comprehensive professional mariner program and an associate degree in maritime transportation. It is located at 3700 Old Highway 146 in La Porte, Texas. Feb. Feb. Feb. Basic Fire Fighting (BST Pt. Feb. Feb. Feb. First Aid and CPR (BST Pt. Feb. Feb. Feb.

San Jacinto College and the Seamen’s Church Institute will host e-Navigation Underway (North America) 2016, the third in the annual North American series of conferences focusing upon the development and application of e-navigation. The event will be held at the San Jacinto College Maritime Technology and Training Center, La Porte, Texas, a new facility that opened in Spring of this year. e-Navigation is an initiative of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the goal of which is to provide a decision support environment for the maritime community.

An event examining the role, development and trends in maritime e-Navigation is scheduled for October 17-19, 2016 at the San Jacinto College Maritime Campus in La Porte, Texas. More information is available online here.

Texas ranks third among all states for domestic maritime jobs with Houston ranked second among all U.S. cities for its contribution to the U.S. maritime industry, according to a new study PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) for the Transportation Institute and released by the American Maritime Partnership (AMP), the voice of the U.S. domestic maritime industry. The domestic maritime industry, comprised of the vessels which move cargoes between American ports, pumps $8 billion annually into the Texas economy, and provides 39,190 Texas maritime jobs, with $2.3 billion in worker income.

On the U.S. Gulf Coast, two well-regarded maritime education providers are expanding to meet growing local demand, while satisfying local employers with quality graduates. The sense of ‘community’ that they project is both real, and intentional. Less than 350 miles apart, the ports of Houston and New Orleans handle all manners of marine commerce and cargoes, employ tens of thousands on the waterfront and collectively service an increasingly large percentage of the nation’s domestic and international marine traffic. As both ports deepen their channels and grow their facilities, the need for qualified mariners, dock workers and marine professionals has become more acute.

The San Jacinto College Maritime Technology and Training Center on the Maritime Campus is now open for maritime training along the Port of Houston. Located at 3700 Old State Highway 146 in La Porte, Texas, the 45,000-square-foot Maritime Technology and Training Center sits 14 feet above ground and is home to more than 40 maritime courses. The ground level of the Maritime Technology and Training Center showcases a training dock with lifeboats, davits, and fast rescue craft, and coming soon, a separate industry dock for crew changes.

The San Jacinto College Maritime Technology and Training Center is in its final phase of construction before its January 2016 debut. Construction has been ongoing since last Fall. The facility will serve as the site for certificate and associate degree maritime training delivered through U.S. Coast Guard-required and approved course work. Relocation of the three full-mission ships bridge simulators has been completed. All maritime staff and faculty will begin moving from the maritime training facility in Pasadena…

United States Maritime Administration tours Maritime Technology and Training Center site. Administrators from the United States Maritime Administration (MARAD), along with staff from United States Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, recently visited the construction site of the Maritime Technology and Training Center, where they received a glimpse of one of the region's only waterfront campuses being built specifically for mariner training and as a home to the state's first maritime transportation associate degree program. Michael Rodriguez, MARAD deputy maritime administrator; Shawn Ireland, MARAD director of Office of Ship Disposal Programs…

The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, recognized the Port of Houston Partners in Maritime Education as part of the 2015 Bright Ideas program. This year's cohort includes 124 programs from all levels of government--school districts; county, city, state, and federal agencies; as well as public-private partnerships--that are at the forefront in innovative government action. Since 2009, the Port of Houston Authority has been tackling the growing need for skilled maritime workers by organizing maritime academies at four area school districts at the high school level to introduce youth to maritime transportation systems and career pathways as mariners, and in shipbuilding and repair, and port operations.

San Jacinto College has broken ground along the Port of Houston for its new 45,000-square-foot Maritime Training Center. At the site of 3700 Old Highway 146 in La Porte, stood student Dave Allen, taking in the view of concrete piers that will support San Jacinto College Maritime Training Center, a facility to prepare new mariners and serve as local training site. “This is going to prepare so many people for work in this industry,” said the San Jacinto College maritime student, who is on track for employment with a local maritime company and completes his second internship this year.

Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) informs that its Chairman, Andres Alcantar, recently visited the San Jacinto College maritime training center to present a $368,173 Skills Development Fund grant for maritime job training. The TWC Skills Development Fund grant will fund training for 195 mariners from Buffalo Marine Services, G&H Towing Co., Higman Barge Lines Inc., and J.A.M. Distributing. Since the start of the San Jacinto College maritime program in 2010, approximately 2,500 U.S. Coast Guard certificates have been awarded to mariners. TWC explains that having a local maritime training center saves companies travel expenses. In the past, mariners were sent out of state for similar training.

Leaders from the petrochemical, maritime, logistics and transportation industries delivered robust economic forecasts for the Houston Ship Channel region during the 5th annual Economic Alliance Houston Port Region Petrochemical & Maritime Outlook Conference held at the Pasadena Convention Center Thursday, September 4. More than 650 people listened to encouraging news about expansion plans amid a resurgent energy renaissance in Texas and the U.S. The Port of Houston Authority and the Panama Canal Authority gave presentations recognizing their growth as 100-year anniversaries are being celebrated for both the canal and the Houston Ship Channel.

After 20 days offshore, Colton Hendrick and Blake Snapp are back on land, preparing for their next journey out on the water as new maritime interns with Higman Marine Services. And they love it. "It can be tough work at times, but the beauty is seeing the sun rise and set each day," said Snapp. Plus, the money and job security are incentives as well. Both Snapp and Hendrick stand to earn approximately $100,000 by the fifth year of their first maritime job. Also, with many fellow mariners talking about upcoming retirement, the idea of becoming captains isn't far-fetched either, especially when they will hold associate degrees in maritime technology.

As San Jacinto College prepares to break ground to build the region's newest maritime training facility, some of the industry's most sought after training technology has arrived and is awaiting its new home. The college recently received three interactive, full-mission, ship bridge simulators, thanks to a collaborative agreement with the Houston Pilots. They will be moved to the College's 45,000-square-foot Maritime Technology and Training Center once it opens, projected for mid 2015.

When José Tamayo and Calvin Aubry step foot onto the deck of the Galveston Island Ferry, they can be in for a long day as deckhands. But as they both see it, what's better than a day out on the water? The deckhand is the first position for a person vying for a chance to work in the maritime industry. It is a position that opens doors as mariners continue to obtain their U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) certifications. As keeper of the deck, deckhands are usually in charge of some maintenance duties, loading and unloading, and keeping the deck in order. They can start making anywhere from $130 to $170 a day, depending on inland or near coastal service. For deckhands who work on the Galveston Island Ferry, the job allows them the ability to return home each evening after working eight-hour shifts.

The Shearer Group, Inc. (TSGI) announced the continued expansion of its naval architecture and marine engineer practice near Houston. Over the past year the company has made five new additions: Joshua Sebastian, P.E., Engineer Manager; Michael Capitain, Naval Architect; Ronald P. Sikora, Designer; Jacqueline Ellis, Designer; and Jo Ann Pitzer, Administrative Assistant. Joshua Sebastian graduated in 1999 from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy with a degree in Naval Architecture/Marine Engineering.

San Jacinto College will acquire three interactive bridge simulators for professional mariner training thanks to a collaborative agreement with the Houston Pilots. The simulators, valued at approximately $1.5 million, are room-sized replicas of ship control bridges, each with a 270-degree view and life-like graphics displayed on multiple 65-inch monitors. They will come complete with instructor stations, debrief classrooms and development stations. "Everyone benefits from these simulators and maritime training; in turn, making the ship channel safer for marine navigation," said Capt.

May 22 is National Maritime Day, an observance to recognize the contributions and sacrifices made by America's Merchant Marine. However, it is also a time to reflect on a growing industry that is facing needs for highly-skilled mariners. The total value of marine freight is estimated to increase by 43 percent domestically and 67 percent internationally by 2020, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Maritime Administration. At the same time, it is predicted that increased consumer demand for liquid natural gas (LNG) and oil will require newly-skilled mariners, new vessels, and expanded terminal infrastructure. Employment of U.S.

Rear Adm. William W. Pickavance, Jr. has joined San Jacinto College as a consultant to the maritime program. Pickavance, who served as an officer in the U.S. Merchant Marine, spent 32 years on active duty as a commissioned officer with the U.S. Navy. He will assist with the development of the new San Jacinto College maritime facility along the Port of Houston. The facility will house multiple classrooms, labs, and simulators to increase the amount of U.S. Coast Guard-approved training to mariners.

The third annual Maritime Youth Expo will be held at the Port of Houston's Bayport Cruise Terminal, Saturday 6, April 2013. Hundreds of area high school maritime students and Sea Scouts will have the opportunity to hear mariners talk about opportunities on tow boats, harbor tugs and barges, learn about maritime salvage and see salvor equipment in action, and watch state-of-the-art Coast Guard helicopters and small boats perform on-water demonstrations. The Port Authority's M/V Sam Houston, fireboats and the Emergency Command Center will be on display. Representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard, Texas Parks & Wildlife, Texas General Land Office…