The SIU-affiliated Paul Hall Center for Maritime Training and Education, which includes the Seafarers Harry Lundeberg School of Seamanship, has been named a “Center of Excellence for Domestic Maritime Workforce Training and Education” by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD). The related MARAD press release appears below and is available on the agency’s website HERE.
More information about the Centers of Excellence program (including a list of designees) is available HERE.
The Paul Hall Center, based in Piney Point, Maryland, offers 120 courses, the vast majority of which are approved by the U.S. Coast Guard or the U.S. Military Sealift Command. Founded in 1967, the school is closely affiliated with the Seafarers International Union, and it provides instruction for both unlicensed and licensed mariners. The school also has a highly regarded apprentice program that is certified by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Maritime Administration Announces Centers of Excellence Designations for Domestic Maritime Workforce Training and Education
Thursday, February 22, 2024
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced the designation of 32 Centers of Excellence (CoE) for Domestic Maritime Workforce Training and Education. The designated COEs consist of 50 maritime training locations across 17 states and Guam. The designation recognizes and promotes support to post-secondary maritime training programs that prepare students for careers in the maritime industry.
“Our country depends on a highly-skilled mariner workforce to strengthen both our economy and our national security,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “The 32 Centers of Excellence we’re designating today will promote training opportunities outside of traditional four-year degree programs and will bring more Americans into these great maritime careers.”
Section 51706 of title 46 United States Code authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to designate a domestic maritime workforce training and education entity as a “center of excellence” if such entity, among other things, is demonstrably successful in maritime workforce training and education.
“Our Centers of Excellence designations recognize the high standards of maritime education and training provided by these organizations,” said Maritime Administrator Ann Phillips. “These institutions play a critical role in providing domestic mariners with the expertise needed to best serve the maritime industry.”
MARAD published a solicitation for applications in the Federal Register on July 20, 2023, for eligible and qualified training entities, under the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act. The approved entities include thirty-eight postsecondary educational institutions; one postsecondary vocational institution; four non-profit structured experiential training programs; four registered apprenticeship sponsors; three maritime training centers; and four organizations containing a combination of the above-mentioned entities.
For additional information, a full list of designees, and a searchable interactive map identifying designee locations please visit the Centers of Excellence homepage.
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