AMTECH
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Association of Marine Technicians
Edgewater, MD Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology students will now be able to earn an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree through a program offered by Cecil Community College located in North East, Maryland. Today’s announcement is the first to be reached as part of a broader cooperative agreement between ABYC and the Cecil Community College, and other regional education centers to tackle the growing concern regarding the diminishing labor pool of qualified marine trades professionals throughout Maryland, Delaware and Northern Virginia. Initial discussions grew to include Westlawn’s role in educating small craft and yacht designers for today’s diverse recreational boating market. The AAS Degree in Transportation & Logistics – Small Craft and Yacht Design Option, was recently approved by the Maryland Higher Education Commission, which set the stage for formally launching the program this coming Fall. The degree will be conferred by Cecil Community College, and will incorporate Westlawn’s already existing and highly successful distance learning program to deliver the yacht and small craft design segment of the degree program. Cecil Community College will deliver all remaining general educational courses, culminating in the award of the AAS degree. The College is working rapidly toward offering all of the general course requirements online in the near future, which will make possible a truly global program. Westlawn Director, Dave Gerr, says “The associate’s degree program with Cecil Community College is part of the ongoing commitment of Westlawn and ABYC to offer the broadest range of educational opportunities to our students and to individuals interested in entering or advancing in the boating industry.” “We're very excited about our new affiliation with Cecil Community College and look forward to this and still more new programs to come,” stated Gerr. Steve Webb, M.B.A., CPIM, C.P.M. Director of the Mid-Atlantic Transportation and Logistics Institute at Cecil Joint Education Agreement Community College says, “The college takes our mission and the contributions we make towards workforce development very seriously.” “By taking a regional approach, such as this, versus pursuing a smaller niche, means we can offer a much stronger, broad-based program that gives students the greatest amount of opportunities,” continued Webb. “Cecil Community College is excited to be a part of such a comprehensive partnership that includes the industry and ABYC.” “We’re always targeting industries with the greatest need, and the best opportunities for our students, and it seems we found a great match,” Webb continued. In addition to the Small Craft and Yacht Design Option, ABYC is currently working with Cecil Community College to create a Marine Trades Option as part of the College’s Transportation & Logistics associate’s degree initiative. Formally to be first offered during the Fall semester of 2004 or the Spring semester 2005, the Marine Trades Pathway will be include ABYC standards, and is intended to offer the necessary education and training to enable the student to fill critical workforce shortages within the region. The College’s Transportation, Distribution and Logistics Pathways currently include accredited programs in aviation, transportation, and supply chain management. One unique feature of the College’s Marine Trades Pathway is that it is being created to complement and support a national high school marine trades feeder program model currently being developed in cooperation with secondary school officials in Rhode Island and ABYC. The model could then be adapted and modified by local school districts in cooperation with local industry to produce a responsive program which meets regional needs. ABYC’s ultimate goal is to work cooperatively across the nation with educational institutions in support of marine trade programs that will prepare individuals to enter, remain, and professionally grow to support the marine industry on a local and regional basis. “In order to make a real impact, workforce education and training initiatives must to be tailored to meet local and regional challenges and employer needs,” Skip Burdon, President of ABYC, recently stated. He continued, “For example, where there is a high concentration of marine manufacturers, the successful program must emphasize small craft and yacht construction.” “Conversely, where the industry centers around repair facilities, small boat yards and marinas, workforce education and training programs must address a different set of skills in order to best serve employer and industry needs,” stated Burdon. As part of Cecil Community College’s Marine Trades Pathway, course offerings will be embedded with appropriate ABYC education and training materials necessary for students to earn both a college degree and appropriate ABYC Certification(s). The program will also require students to participate in local marine industry internships, which will offer students the flexibility to learn while they are working for local marine trade businesses. “The blended, living approach to education and training works very well for the marine industry workforce,” stated Burdon. “The ability to utilize the classroom, labs, online learning and practical on-the-job training is what will make this program come to life and be highly successful,” Burdon further stated. “The resulting associate’s degree and ABYC Certifications will serve as a signal to the potential employer that this individual comes to you prepared and motivated to contribute to your organization,” said Burdon. “And more importantly, we hope the student will come to an understanding that, within our industry, learning is an essential life-long journey,” Burdon concluded. About ABYC ABYC has been developing, writing and updating the safety standards for boat building and repair in the United States for 50 years. ABYC is actively involved with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as well as certification programs for marine technicians. These standards are available on CD-ROM and in printed form. Membership and general information can be requested by calling (410) 956-1050 or by visiting the ABYC website at www.abyinc.org. About Westlawn Founded in 1930, the Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology is the only nationally accredited and state certified distance-learning school of small-craft design in the United States. As the not-for-profit educational affiliate of the American Boat and Yacht Council, Westlawn's primary function is to assure a continual source of highly skilled designers to the marine industry. To learn more about Westlawn please call (410) 956-7100 or visit the Westlawn website at www.westlawn.org. About Cecil Community College Cecil Community College is a small, publicly funded, open access institution, which promotes educational, cultural and economic development in a changing county in Maryland. The faculty and staff are dedicated to providing optimal education in an environment that fosters social responsibility and appreciation for cultural diversity. Cecil Community College offers high-quality transfer, career credit, and continuing education courses and programs that are designed for college preparation, for the acquisition and upgrading of employment skills, and for personal enrichment. A variety of support services are available to help students formulate and achieve goals. For more information about Cecil Community College, please call (410) 287-1000 or visit the College website at www.cecilcc.edu. This press release is courtesy of ABYC |