News From Fort Schuyler

December 10, 1997 - Volume 1, No. 7

ONE-TWO-THREE: Today, December 10 1997, is the 123rd anniversary of the Maritime College. On this day in 1874, at a berth at the foot of East 23rd Street, Captain Stephen Bleecker Luce delivered the refurbished sloop-of-war ST. MARY'S to the Executive Committee on Nautical Schools of the New York City Board of Education as the schoolship of the newly established New York Nautical School.

EDWARD VILLELLA '59 AWARDED NATIONAL MEDAL OF ARTS - Ed Villella was presented the nation's highest honor for lifetime achievement in the performing arts at a State Department dinner on December 6, followed by a reception at the White House on December 7. On December 26th, CBS will broadcast the two-hour Kennedy Center gala which was held on December 8 to honor this year's five recipients: Lauren Bacall, Bob Dylan, Charlton Heston, Jessye Norman and Fort Schuyler's own, Edward Villella.

AMBASSADOR ERNEST H. PREEG '56, the former Ambassador to Haiti, occupies the William M. Scholl Chair in International Business at the prestigious Washington D.C. "think tank," the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Responding to a Luce Library request, he has donated inscribed copies of four of his most recent books. In an accompanying note, Ernie wrote: "I recall with great affection my four years working on the library staff at Fort Schuyler, including, if I recall correctly, serving as cadet librarian during my final year. My extensive exposure to books during this time helped lead me on to a lifetime of reading them and more recently writing a few of them."

TOM CONNORS '67 IS A VERY DISTINGUISHED FELLOW - The November issue of the Military Sealift Command publication, SeaLift, reported that Thomas G. Connors, MSC's director of engineering, was awarded the Distinguished Engineer Award at the recent SNAME annual meeting held in Ottawa, Canada. Tom is the first recipient of this award, which is given by the Maritime College Alumni Association.

SENIOR DECK LICENSE FACULTY SOUGHT - Since many on this list are professional mariners or are in contact with other mariners, please help give the following vacancy announcement the widest exposure possible:

- SUNY Maritime College invites applications for a senior-level position in its Marine Transportation Department to teach a variety of nautical science courses, including bridge management teamwork using the college's simulator. Participation in the annual Summer Sea Term is expected.
- The applicant is expected to hold a current U.S. Coast Guard unlimited Master's license and to have at least five years recent sailing experience as Master. It is highly desirable that the candidate be PIC certified. Other desirable qualifications include an advanced academic degree and teaching experience.
- Applications, including a current resume, should be sent to:
Chair, Marine Transportation Department
SUNY Maritime College
6 Pennyfield Avenue
Fort Schuyler
Bronx, NY 10465-4198
FAX: 718-409-7295

CHECK OUT THE MARITIME INDUSTRY MUSEUM WEB-PAGE: Photos and brief histories of our eight school ships can be found at the "Training Ships Gallery" page of the Maritime Industry Museum's cadet-created web-site at: http://www.sunymaritime.edu/museum/index.htm. (Thanks to Barry Marsh '86 for the reminder.)

LIBRARY HOURS CURTAILED DURING CHRISTMAS LEAVE PERIOD - The college will continue the practice of shutting down most offices during the Christmas break in order to save money on heat and salaries. The Luce Library Reading Room, therefore, will be closed from Sunday, December 21 through Sunday January 4.

SEASON'S GREETINGS FROM ALL OF US HERE AT FORT SCHUYLER