U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood Announces New Superintendent for U.S. Merchant Marine Academy; Says Helis is “ideal fit” to oversee Academy’s future with military, academic experience. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today named Colonel (ret.) James Helis, Ph.D., as the new superintendent for the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Helis, a 30-year Army veteran, will begin work at the Academy next month after spending the past eight years as a department chair at the United States War College. “Colonel Helis is an ideal fit for the Academy,” said U.S.