U.S. Merchant Marine Academy – New Acting Superintendent Fred Total Views: 68 January 14, 2010 Word comes via the US Merchant Marine Academy Alumni Association that the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy has named an acting Superintendent to handle the position left vacant by the resignation of Rear Admiral Allen Worley back in November. He held the position for a year. KUMAR TAKES THE HELM Dr Shashi Kumar, Ph.D., Master Mariner and the Academy’s 12th Academic Dean has again taken the helm as the Interim Superintendent effective January 4th. He served as Interim Superintendent October 1 through November 14, 2008 while the Academy was then searching for a new Superintendent. Prior to joining USMMA, Dr. Kumar was the founding Dean of the Loeb-Sullivan School of International Business and Logistics at Maine Maritime Academy. He earned an unlimited Master Mariner (UK) certificate of competency and sailed extensively for a decade before entering academe. His significant accomplishments include the Transport Reviews’ 1st prize for new PhD’s in transportation, an award for excellence in teaching; Sam M. Walton Free Enterprise Fellowship (1998-2006) as well as the Maine International Innovator of the Year Award. Dr. Kumar has published extensively and authors an annual review of the U.S. Merchant Marine for the U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings . He continues to serve as the Academy’s Academic Dean. Best wishes to Dr. Kumar in carrying out his two jobs. It remains to be seen how the position will finally be filled, again. As a graduate, I believe that an ideal candidate would be another graduate. The Academy does need a strong leader, if for no other reason but to lobby the Government on behalf of the school. After all, there is no ‘Merchant Marine’ wing in the Pentagon to look after the school. The Academy is also working it’s way through the findings of a critical GAO Report from August 2009. ( UNITED STATES MERCHANT MARINE ACADEMY – Internal Control Weaknesses Resulted in Impro