USMMA Draft Strategic Plan (2012-2017) - Your comments Requested?

[Mikey]

Opportunity to Provide Comments on the USMMA Draft Strategic Plan (2012-2017)

The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy is in the midst of developing its next Strategic Plan, which will serve as a road map to prioritize investments and help the Academy provide a first-class education for future Kings Point midshipmen. We invite you to review and comment on the USMMA Draft Strategic Plan (2012-2017) by July 4, 2012.
Please submit comments to STRATEGICPLAN@USMMA.EDU.


The USMMA Strategic Planning process was launched on March 13, 2012, by acting Superintendent Dr. Shashi Kumar and U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood during a town hall meeting with midshipmen, faculty and staff. This was the beginning of an extensive outreach process to gather feedback and insights for the USMMA Five Year Strategic Plan. Since that time, we have:

• Surveyed more than 500 midshipmen, faculty and staff

• Hosted five campus engagement sessions with more than 250 midshipmen, faculty and staff

• Organized five virtual and in-person Strategic Planning Sessions with more than 200 alumni from across the country

• Met with more than 50 industry representatives in Seattle, Houston and Kings Point

• Taken part in meetings with Great Neck community leaders and other Academy stakeholders, including Navy, NOAA, US Army, Coast Guard, Army Corp of Engineers and Military Sealift Command

The Strategic Plan articulates why the Academy matters, its importance to the nation and the values that drive its success. We want to thank everyone who participated in one of the outreach sessions during the USMMA Strategic Planning process. Again, please submit comments to STRATEGICPLAN@USMMA.EDU no later than July 4, 2012.

Download - USMMA Draft Strategic Plan (2012-2017)

[c.captain]

The USMMA Strategic Planning process was launched on March 13, 2012, by acting Superintendent Dr. Shashi Kumar and U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood during a town hall meeting with midshipmen, faculty and staff. This was the beginning of an extensive outreach process to gather feedback and insights for the USMMA Five Year Strategic Plan. Since that time, we have:

>Surveyed more than 500 midshipmen, faculty and staff

and one can assume safety that none of which would want to close KP

>Hosted five campus engagement sessions with more than 250 midshipmen, faculty and staff

what the hell is the difference with the one above?

>Organized five virtual and in-person Strategic Planning Sessions with more than 200 alumni from across the country

Let me quest that none of which would want to close KP...

>Met with more than 50 industry representatives in Seattle, Houston and Kings Point

specifically selected so that none of which would want to close KP

>Taken part in meetings with Great Neck community leaders and other Academy stakeholders, including Navy, NOAA, US Army, Coast Guard, Army Corp of Engineers and Military Sealift Command

Of course, none of which would want to close KP

The Strategic Plan articulates why the Academy matters, its importance to the nation and the values that drive its success. We want to thank everyone who participated in one of the outreach sessions during the USMMA Strategic Planning process. Again, please submit comments no later than July 4, 2012.

So that it can be completely ignored unless it is a 100% sycophat responce behind this meaningless "strategic plan" which changes NOTHING and continues to waste untold MILLIONS of dollars on a dead institution that refuses to just die!

[Whiplasher]

I may not be a expert on anything but how is it a "dead" institution

[c.captain]

I may not be a expert on anything but how is it a "dead" institution

The reason KP is dead is that the premise of its very existence is almost 80 years old based on the 1933 loss of the MORRO CASTLE and the Merchant Marine Act of 1936. It is now 2012 and that premise can no longer be justified to the American taxpayers of which I am one. Keeping KP open costs too much and produces too little for it. Everything it provides to the national defence can be supplied for a fraction of the cost by the various state maritime schools. Go back through the many earlier threads on this subject and you will gain valuable knowledge on this debate.

sidebar...BOO on Mickey for deleting my Archie Bunker youtube vid. Kenny1983 thought it was funny and yeah on him. Good on ya mate!

[cappy208]

I may not be a expert on anything but how is it a "dead" institution

This is a not so oblique reference to a body on life support.

Sometimes, someone has to make a painful decision. Do we keep taking (giving) heroic measures to keep the corpus alive? Or does a rationale mind accept the inevitable, that KP has outlived the original reason for its inception, and a 'new' reason must be found if it is to be kept alive?

There is an industry wide dilemma occurring. This may come as a surprise to some, (and some are in complete denial about) but it is true nonetheless. For the vast majority of 'jobs' available in this industry, a graduate from most maritime academies is NOT able to even fulfill the job! (License wise, yes. But practical skills no.) It takes a furher one or three years of OTJ training (and even then, some are not capable) for an individual to be self standing, and capable.

Until this shortcoming is both realized and dealt with, KP is going to languish, be a pork barrel expenditure, and keep graduating superfluous alumni.

One of the oft quoted reasons for the 'need' of KP (as used by all the academies) is that 'so many' alumni go on to become leaders in industry. A couple that come to mind were mentioned; an astronaut, a state senator, presidents of various huge corporations. Duh! If the family connections land a kid a congressional spot at KP, and the kid has a good GPA, how hard is that to follow? It wouldn't matter what school a connected kid attends. Nepotism is a hard thing to beat.

Study KP in comparison to the schools that it competes with. The superfluous comment directly applies to the comparison to other state schools. If 'it' can be done cheaper, better, faster at a state school........why not?

[Sweat-n-Grease]

This is a not so oblique reference to a body on life support.

Sometimes, someone has to make a painful decision. Do we keep taking (giving) heroic measures to keep the corpus alive? Or does a rationale mind accept the inevitable, that KP has outlived the original reason for its inception, and a 'new' reason must be found if it is to be kept alive?

There is an industry wide dilemma occurring. This may come as a surprise to some, (and some are in complete denial about) but it is true nonetheless. For the vast majority of 'jobs' available in this industry, a graduate from most maritime academies is NOT able to even fulfill the job! (License wise, yes. But practical skills no.) It takes a furher one or three years of OTJ training (and even then, some are not capable) for an individual to be self standing, and capable.

Until this shortcoming is both realized and dealt with, KP is going to languish, be a pork barrel expenditure, and keep graduating superfluous alumni.

One of the oft quoted reasons for the 'need' of KP (as used by all the academies) is that 'so many' alumni go on to become leaders in industry. A couple that come to mind were mentioned; an astronaut, a state senator, presidents of various huge corporations. Duh! If the family connections land a kid a congressional spot at KP, and the kid has a good GPA, how hard is that to follow? It wouldn't matter what school a connected kid attends. Nepotism is a hard thing to beat.

Study KP in comparison to the schools that it competes with. The superfluous comment directly applies to the comparison to other state schools. If 'it' can be done cheaper, better, faster at a state school........why not?

and the band plays on .. and on .. and on

[cappy208]

and the band plays on .. and on .. and on

The band plays on and on.... and on and on.....

Because it would seem that most people who read these posts (even on the US armed services blog) don't read more than the first page, and appear to not really even care about the truthfulness or validity of the discussion. They simply come to the blog with their minds made up (like me! :-) and don't see the forest for the trees.

[Sweat-n-Grease]

The band plays on and on.... and on and on.....

Because it would seem that most people who read these posts (even on the US armed services blog) don't read more than the first page, and appear to not really even care about the truthfulness or validity of the discussion. They simply come to the blog with their minds made up (like me! :-) and don't see the forest for the trees.

I received feed back, through email by a few KP graduates who know me, concerning my post several months ago in which I asked if there could be a US Naval Academy without a Navy, a West Point without an Army, and the argument these graduates made was the mission changed since my days at KP a half century ago. My reply to them was a simple "Oh." Yup, and the band plays on and on. BTW, does this mean there are quite a few out there in cyber space who actually read our posts, discuss them without joining the forum? I often post my opinion that the primary mission of any organization is to perpetuate itself. This can be easily seen at KP today, KP designs a new shoe to fit the times.

[cmakin]

I received feed back, through email by a few KP graduates who know me, concerning my post several months ago in which I asked if there could be a US Naval Academy without a Navy, a West Point without an Army, and the argument these graduates made was the mission changed since my days at KP a half century ago. My reply to them was a simple "Oh." Yup, and the band plays on and on. BTW, does this mean there are quite a few out there in cyber space who actually read our posts, discuss them without joining the forum? I often post my opinion that the primary mission of any organization is to perpetuate itself. This can be easily seen at KP today, KP designs a new shoe to fit the times.

And the show fits the industry just about as well as MARAD does. Oh, wait. . . .

[KPEngineer]

I often post my opinion that the primary mission of any organization is to perpetuate itself. This can be easily seen at KP today, KP designs a new shoe to fit the times.

There really isn't anything wrong with that. I wouldn't want to work for my company if they didn't care if they stayed in business or not. Any organization I choose to be a part of, I would hope they would want to continue to be around so I can stay with them if I want to. It's not exactly the same as a governmental organization, but as long as the taxpayer is getting value for the money appropriated***, there isn't anything inherently wrong in an organization changing to survive even if their newest iteration is nothing like the original.

*** DISCLAIMER - Not saying KP does the best job of that, only saying that's the real criteria to judge them by and not whether they meet their original mission.

[c.captain]

And the show fits the industry just about as well as MARAD does. Oh, wait. . . .

It is not as if there are never decisions made within government that a facility is no longer needed and that the further cost to keep a facility open cannot continue to be justified. How many military bases? No longer needed because the mission of the individual service has changed. How many naval shipyards? Closed because it frankly is more economical to have commercial yards do the work?

It is not that there is no need for merchant mariner officer training but the fundimental mission of KP is now so diluted and corrupted from it's original one that is must be constantly altered to attempt to maintain that justication plus the simple economics are more than clear that the school costs to damned much for what it produces. $86M might be a drop in the cost of things but there will never be spending containment in the federal budget until hundreds of little KP type drops in that bucket will fill it full of money that we can no longer afford to spend.

KP must be closed...

[Sweat-n-Grease]

There really isn't anything wrong with that. I wouldn't want to work for my company if they didn't care if they stayed in business or not. Any organization I choose to be a part of, I would hope they would want to continue to be around so I can stay with them if I want to. It's not exactly the same as a governmental organization, but as long as the taxpayer is getting value for the money appropriated***, there isn't anything inherently wrong in an organization changing to survive even if their newest iteration is nothing like the original.

*** DISCLAIMER - Not saying KP does the best job of that, only saying that's the real criteria to judge them by and not whether they meet their original mission.

Well KPEngineer, there are times I feel we might just as well be discussing how many angels dance on the head of a pin, what will be will be. I suppose most of us are wondering just what will a former Army Colonel bring to the table. Will it be as someone, either on this forum or another forum I may have read, posted: "We were called Annapolis North, will we now become West Point South?" Whatever, you can be sure they will make the shoe fit. Something definitely is happening at Kings Point, what it is no one can rightly say, what will be will be. I'm an old throw back to an era long gone in the United States, a time of U. S. Merchant Ships and the men who worked them.

[KPEngineer]

Well KPEngineer, there are times I feel we might just as well be discussing how many angels dance on the head of a pin, what will be will be. I suppose most of us are wondering just what will a former Army Colonel bring to the table. Will it be as someone, either on this forum or another forum I may have read, posted: "We were called Annapolis North, will we now become West Point South?" Whatever, you can be sure they will make the shoe fit. Something definitely is happening at Kings Point, what it is no one can rightly say, what will be will be. I'm an old throw back to an era long gone in the United States, a time of U. S. Merchant Ships and the men who worked them.

No argument from me. I'm just not a fan of broad generalities ... Unless we're talking about deckies of course

It's a little before my time but I too long for the days when ships were wood and men were steel.

[Sweat-n-Grease]

No argument from me. I'm just not a fan of broad generalities ...

Yea, the devil is in the details.

Unless we're talking about deckies of course

of course..

It's a little before my time but I too long for the days when ships were wood and men were steel.

I'll take a steam cargo ship on a long voyage around the world any day, in 1963 I did several four month around the world voyages, back to back. The ship was the SS Flying Hawk, the Company was American-Export Isbrandtsen Steamship Company out of Hoboken. It was a delight for a young engineer, we would pull right in a port city, shore time was something else, plus we would stay for several days to a week or two. Imagine that !! Back then I never thought I was living and working in an era too soon gone.

My best to you, KPEngineer

[cmakin]

I'll take a steam cargo ship on a long voyage around the world any day, in 1963 I did several four month around the world voyages, back to back. The ship was the SS Flying Hawk, the Company was American-Export Isbrandtsen Steamship Company out of Hoboken. It was a delight for a young engineer, we would pull right in a port city, shore time was something else, plus we would stay for several days to a week or two. Imagine that !! Back then I never thought I was living and working in an era too soon gone.

My best to you, KPEngineer

I never made a circumnavigation, but I was lucky enough to make a couple of trips on stick ships. Two (plus) month voyages (longer when the company went bankrupt); and as you state-lots of port calls and stays longer than mere hours. Lots of hard, hot work; but with the job satisfaction that goes with it. I am not one to dwell on the past, however I certainly do look back on those years fondly. Little did I know that it was an end of an era. I spent too much time on vessels with short, crappy port calls; remote docks, nasty diesels. . . . .

I can say that it certainly was an influence in coming ashore.

[Sweat-n-Grease]

I never made a circumnavigation, but I was lucky enough to make a couple of trips on stick ships. Two (plus) month voyages (longer when the company went bankrupt); and as you state-lots of port calls and stays longer than mere hours. Lots of hard, hot work; but with the job satisfaction that goes with it. I am not one to dwell on the past, however I certainly do look back on those years fondly. Little did I know that it was an end of an era. I spent too much time on vessels with short, crappy port calls; remote docks, nasty diesels. . . . .

I can say that it certainly was an influence in coming ashore.

Yea, I know what you mean. In my closing years at sea I sailed a few diesels. The first diesel ship was a Lykes container having a MAN plant. It was ok but then came my next job, First aboard a vessel using an old over worked Colt Pielstick, I need not add any more words about THAT. It was past time to say good bye. My sailing years were already in so I just fiddle around here and there, although I always accepted a call to take a steam ship. My very last vessel, SS Prudhoe Bay, was a steamer. I accepted the First job, took her to a starving country, North Korea, carrying grain. Interesting way to close out a long career. I worked my butt off on her but didn't mind it a bit, I knew the plant well. Turns out the North Korean run was the final cargo run for the aging ship, she was shortly scrapped on some horrible looking beach in India. I refused the offer to sail her to her death, she was my last ship. When the Prudhoe Bay returned back home from North Korea we killed the plant at a tie-up near Portland. The crew flew out the next day, before I departed the ship I made my way back to the Engine Room, patted the throttles and said "Good Bye my old friend." For me it indeed was FWE. I never sailed again.

[cmakin]

Yea, I know what you mean. In my closing years at sea I sailed a few diesels. The first diesel ship was a Lykes container having a MAN plant. It was ok but then came my next job, First aboard a vessel using an old over worked Colt Pielstick, I need not add any more words about THAT. It was past time to say good bye. My sailing years were already in so I just fiddle around here and there, although I always accepted a call to take a steam ship. My very last vessel, SS Prudhoe Bay, was a steamer. I accepted the First job, took her to a starving country, North Korea, carrying grain. Interesting way to close out a long career. I worked my butt off on her but didn't mind it a bit, I knew the plant well. Turns out the North Korean run was the final cargo run for the aging ship, she was shortly scrapped on some horrible looking beach in India. I refused the offer to sail her to her death, she was my last ship. When the Prudhoe Bay returned back home from North Korea we killed the plant at a tie-up near Portland. The crew flew out the next day, before I departed the ship I made my way back to the Engine Room, patted the throttles and said "Good Bye my old friend." For me it indeed was FWE. I never sailed again.

Was that the Charlotte, Margret or, oh, man, I forget; those old German Express Class ships? They were my regular customers when Lykes moved their container operation to Galveston. I even saw some old shipmates on those.

[Sweat-n-Grease]

Was that the Charlotte, Margret or, oh, man, I forget; those old German Express Class ships? They were my regular customers when Lykes moved their container operation to Galveston. I even saw some old shipmates on those.

They were good ships. It was the Charlotte, the year was 1986, Captain, Chief Mate, Chief Engineer, and 2nd A/E (me) were Kings Pointers. This was before container ops were moved to Galveston. One thing I well recall, it was so cold in Bremerhaven that Feb in 86 we had a hell of a time keeping the fuel warm enough to use - believe me - we were using "navy special" (almost like bunker C) - we had diesel fuel for starting but every time we switched over - opps! Funny, all the equipment had an identification tag, in German. How could I ever forget ABHITZEKESSEL.

[cmakin]

They were good ships. It was the Charlotte, the year was 1986, Captain, Chief Mate, Chief Engineer, and 2nd A/E (me) were Kings Pointers. This was before container ops were moved to Galveston. One thing I well recall, it was so cold in Bremerhaven that Feb in 86 we had a hell of a time keeping the fuel warm enough to use - believe me - we were using "navy special" (almost like bunker C) - we had diesel fuel for starting but every time we switched over - opps! Funny, all the equipment had an identification tag, in German. How could I ever forget ABHITZEKESSEL.

When the CHARLOTTE was my regular customer in Galveston, the chiefs were Bob Davis (Calhoun) and Jim Forbes (?) (KP part timer). I had sailed with both of them when I was a cadet and they were sailing as 1AE (on different ships). There couldn't be two more different people. Man, this was back in the early 90s. I was out on the MARGARET when she got t-boned by that Korean tanker, too.

[Sweat-n-Grease]

When the CHARLOTTE was my regular customer in Galveston, the chiefs were Bob Davis (Calhoun) and Jim Forbes (?) (KP part timer). I had sailed with both of them when I was a cadet and they were sailing as 1AE (on different ships). There couldn't be two more different people. Man, this was back in the early 90s. I was out on the MARGARET when she got t-boned by that Korean tanker, too.

WOW !!

I don't know Bob but I sure remember Jim. We got along just fine - He owned a pig farm in Oregon - he was a giant of a man - We lost contact as the years sped by, then I found out he died. If one lives long enough this happens - and often. Jim, being a big man in his first year at KP, was a target for the 2nd classmen who, as I look back, had mental issues with growing-up. Jim, said fuck it, I quit - he had more balls than I. This "regimental" system is worse than useless, great propaganda, interesting press, but totally worthless.
BTW, it was Feb 1987, not 1986, when we couldn't c/o fuel oil without an oops due to the cold.

I don't recall the "t-boned" thingy but then again I might be in my dotage.

Now, in case one might wonder just what do these post exchanges have anything to do with the thread's purpose, I post, let the Colonel reply.