Louisiana Maritime Academy Moves Forward

Nicholls State University has been selected as the home of the newly created Louisiana Maritime Academy (LMA).

The Bachelor of Science in marine transportation degree program at the Louisiana Maritime Academy is being heavily promoted by Gov. Jeff Landry and the Mississippi River pilots’ associations, in addition to Louisiana-based maritime companies. The launch date is the fall semester of 2027, but students already have inquired about the program and are eager for the school to open.

Nicholls State University is situated in Thibodaux, La., on the banks of Bayou Lafourche, about 70 miles upstream from its mouth on the Gulf and the location of Port Fourchon, home base to about 90 percent of the offshore vessels servicing oil and gas production in the Gulf.

Dr. Jay Clune is the president at Nicholls and has been instrumental in supporting the needs of the emerging maritime academy. Landry has set aside $26 million in the capital outlay budget for the facility.

Recently retired U.S Coast Guard Capt. Kelly Denning was selected as the first executive director of the LMA. Denning accepted the position only months after retiring as commander of Sector New Orleans.

State Rep. Mark Wright, a regional vice president for the American Waterways Operators (AWO), helped author Act 231 to authorize the Maritime Academy in January 2023. Denning was initially recruited as a consultant, but the newly formed advisory committee quickly realized the program needed a full-time director with a strong maritime background and an email address ending in “.edu” to further establish credibility.

One of Denning’s first tasks was to figure out how to create a new maritime university. The last one created was the Great Lakes Maritime Academy in 1969, Denning said. In discussions with Clune and members of the maritime community, Denning said she found “lots of people already working in the maritime industry who went to Nicholls.” She admired the “beautiful walking campus” with numerous stately oak trees.

Already on the campus are the Coastal Center, housing offices and research facilities for the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA), biology research labs, classes in the business school focusing on maritime company needs and a culinary institute, named for acclaimed Chef John Folse.

While the Maritime Academy is being developed, it is currently based in a small building on campus. A site has been selected for the initial 8,000-square-foot building, to be located near the culinary institute. The new maritime building will house state-of-the-art simulators, labs and classrooms ready to train the next generation of mariners.

During her first week, Denning said she was introduced to the workings of the University of Louisiana System (ULS) and specifically the vision of its previous president, Dr. Jim Henderson, to create a state maritime academy. “It’s important that we provide opportunities for Louisianans to be developed into leaders and members of the maritime workforce,” Henderson said.

Louisiana employs nine times the national average of maritime workers, with a collective $3.5 billion annual income in the state. One in five jobs in Louisiana are related to the maritime industry.

The current ULS President, Dr. Rick Gallot, is realizing that vision for LMA and looking for new ways to bring the maritime curriculum into higher education with the maritime concentration attached to more traditional degree programs such as marketing and human resources, skill sets needed at maritime companies.

During her second week, Denning visited Texas A&M’s Galveston campus with leaders from ULS and Nicholls as well as some advisory council members. Texas A&M Galveston is currently the closest state maritime academy to Louisiana and where many of Louisiana’s state pilots received their degrees.

Denning said the superintendent at the Great Lakes Maritime Academy has also been very helpful in outlining the challenges involved in creating and maintaining a successful state maritime academy. Denning said the plan is to “create something new” by developing a four-year degree program similar to other state maritime academies while also trying to incorporate the needs of Louisiana’s maritime industry in establishing the curriculum.

She said Rear Adm. (Ret.) John Nadeau, Rear Adm. (Ret.) Richard Timme and Rear Adm. (Ret.) Joel Whitehead, all previous commanders of the Coast Guard’s Heartland District (formerly Eighth District), have all been very supportive in mentoring her through the early stages of the process.

Also contributing are presidents of pilots’ associations, including Capt. Michael Bopp of Crescent Pilots, Capt. Michael Miller of the Bar Pilots and the late Capt. Toby Wattigney Jr. of the NOBRA pilots, who was, by far, the biggest supporter of the Louisiana Maritime Academy, Denning said. She said she looks forward to eventually creating a scholarship program in Wattigney’s name to “honor his great legacy in creating pathways for young people to work in his beloved maritime industry.”

‘What Do You Need?’

“What do you want our students to look like at graduation?” Denning is asking maritime companies. “What do you need?” She said she is trying to incorporate the needs of today’s maritime industry with the traditional curriculum found in other state maritime academies. When LMA begins classes, the Bachelor of Science degree in marine transportation program will prepare graduates to sit for their third mate merchant mariner license.

Next, LMA will add engineering to the program, which will prepare graduates to sit for their third assistant engineer license. With those two programs in place, along with adding a regimental system, LMA can request the Maritime Administration (MarAd) to recognize it as a state maritime academy.

Initially, there will be no university-owned vessels. Students will sail on vessels of participating companies for sea time. LMA plans to look for a number of Coast Guard-approved adjunct professors to teach specialized classes.

While Denning has gotten LMA started in its first year, she recently moved to a new position as the state’s liaison for maritime initiatives, where she will continue to work closely with LMA and its advisory committee but will also be looking for ways to incorporate maritime curriculum across all nine schools in the UL System.

Additionally, once LMA is up and running, as liaison she will be looking for ways to bring continuing education programs to Nicholls for mariners. Denning has turned over the executive director duties at LMA to U.S. Coast Guard Capt. (Ret.) Brad Clare, who recently retired as commander of the National Maritime Center in Martinsburg, W.Va. Clare will reside in Thibodaux and will usher LMA into existence, relying on his knowledge of Coast Guard licensing and course approvals.

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Featured photo caption: U.S. Coast Guard Capt. (Ret.) Kelly Denning served as the first director of the Louisiana Maritime Academy. (Photo courtesy of Louisiana Maritime Academy)