75 Years – Interactive Timeline
This timeline shows milestones in MMA history, along with photographs from Academy archives. It’s also interactive; you are invited to submit entries for events that are not currently represented.
Maine Maritime Academy Timeline
Follow our rich history
School Founded
March 21, 1941
Founded by an Act of the 90th Legislature of the State of Maine: the Maine Nautical Training School
Senator Ralph A. Leavitt
May 1941
Senator Ralph A. Leavitt appointed first Chairman of the Board
First Superintendent
July 1941
Board of Trustees select first superintendent, RADM Douglas E. Dismukes
First Class
October 9, 1941
First class enrolled at Pentagoet
Schooner Mattie
1942
Schooner Mattie (Grace Bailey) makes first and only spring training cruise
Official Designation
1942
Maine Nautical Training School officially designated Maine Maritime Academy
School Buildings
January 23, 1942
Normal School buildings become MMA property by Act of the Legislature
Graduation
May 2, 1943
First Graduation exercises: Class of 1943-1)
Wartime
May 15, 1943
Peak wartime enrollment: 338
Homecoming
October 15, 1943
First Homecoming celebration
2nd Graduation
October 30, 1943
Second Graduation exercises - Class of 1943-2
Alumni Association
1944
Maine Maritime Academy Alumni Association chartered; Ed Langlois, President
Bachelor of Science Degree
1945
An Act is passed providing authority to the Board of Trustees of MMA to confer the degree of Bachelor of Science
3-Year Course
July 1946
A three calendar year course is adopted starting with the class matriculating in July, 1946
Football at MMA
September 1946
Football plays first men's varsity game at Maine Maritime
1st Commencement conferring 3-year degree
1949
First graduating class to complete a 3-year degree
USS Comfort
1953
USS Comfort becomes first TS State of Maine
From 3-Year to 4-Year
1959
Board of Trustees votes to go from 3-year to 4-year program by fall of 1960
Ship Jump
September 1961
Maine Maritime institutes ship jump for incoming students
USS Ancon
1962
USS Ancon becomes second TS State of Maine
Ring Dance
1963
First Ring Dance is held
RADM Rodgers
1964
RADM Rodgers begins 20-year tenure as superintendent
Bachelor of Science
May 1964
First class to receive a 4-year Bachelor of Science degree
Admiral Rodgers
1967
Admiral Rodgers is invited to meet President Johnson at the White House
Cadet Shipping
1967
Cadet Shipping program is launched.
Norwich Howitzer
1968
The Norwich Howitzer is spirited from Vermont to Castine for the MMA/Norwich football game
Alpha Phi Omega
1969
Phyllis Tenney establishes Alpha Phi Omega (APO) Chapter at MMA
Curtis Hall Named
1971
Board of Trustees votes to name new dormitory complex for Kenneth M. Curtis, alumnus and Governor of the State of Maine
Official Accreditation
1972
Academy receives official accreditation by New England Association of Schools and Colleges for a 5-year period
NROTC
1972
NROTC chapter established at MMA
USNS Upshur
1973
USNS Upshur becomes the third TS State of Maine
Soviet Union
1974
Training cruise marks the first U.S. training ship to visit the Soviet Union
First Female Student
May 1976
Deborah Doane is first female student to graduate from Maine Maritime Academy
OpSail 1976
June 1976
TS State of Maine participates in U.S. Bicentennial OpSail
TS State of Maine
1978
TS State of Maine is the set for the movie, The Defection of Simas Kudirka
Master of Science
1983
Academy receives authority to grant a Master of Science degree in Maritime Management
Jekyll Isle
1984
The Academy purchases a ’76 tug, the Jekyll Isle, later named the Pentagoet; first tug and barge program is established.
A Graduate Leads
1986
Kenneth M. Curtis is appointed Superintendent; changes title to President. He is the first MMA graduate to lead the Academy.
On Course for Greatness
1988
Capital campaign “On Course for Greatness” is launched; Trustee Elizabeth Noyce chairs this first multimillion dollar capital campaign.
Schooner Bowdoin
1989
The Academy acquires the historic schooner Bowdoin
Ocean Studies
1990
Ocean Studies program is established
BIW Apprentice Program
1990
Faculty approves a curriculum for an Associate of Science degree for BIW employees as part of their apprentice program
50th Anniversary commemoration of the Invasion of Normandy
1994
The training ship participates in the 50th Anniversary commemoration of the Invasion of Normandy by escorting a WWII vintage cargo ship across the Atlantic
13th President Appointed
March 1995
In March of 1995, Len Tyler began what would become a 15-year tenure as President, following a 26-year career at the Academy as Coach, Dean of Admissions, and VP for External Affairs.
Loeb-Sullivan School of International Business and Logistics
1996
Board votes to establish the Loeb-Sullivan School of International Business and Logistics and IBL program is launched in 1997
Women's Basketball
November 1996
Women's Basketball plays first women's varsity game at Maine Maritime
USNS Tanner
1997
USNS Tanner becomes the fourth TS State of Maine
Fiber Optic Cable
1998
Curtis Hall is completely wired with fiber optic cable; MMA is the first college in Maine to require students to have own laptop computers
Enhancing a Legacy of Excellence
2000
Capital campaign “Enhancing a Legacy of Excellence” is launched with a goal of $20,000,000
Distance Learning
2000
Faculty approval is granted for a program leading to an Associate in Science degree in Ships System Design Technology for Electric Boat apprentices in Connecticut. This is the first program to use distance education technology
STCW Certification
2002
MMA is the third maritime school in the United States to receive authority for STCW certification
U.S. News & World Report
2003
U.S. News & World Report cites Maine Maritime Academy among the fifty finest engineering colleges in the country
800 Students
August 2004
MMA reaches a strategic goal of 800 students
Hall of Fame
October 2004
First class inducted into the William J. Mottola Mariner Athletics Hall of Fame
Alfond Student Center
2005
Alfond Student Center is dedicated at a fall ceremony
Crystal Parker
2005
Crystal Parker becomes first female regimental commander
Hurricane Katrina Assistance
2005
TS State of Maine is deployed to the New Orleans area where it is used in relief efforts following Hurricane Katrina
NCAA DIII Tournament
March 2005
Women's Basketball is the First Maine Maritime team to appear in an NCAA DIII National Championship Tournament
More Accolades
2006
MMA is listed among U.S. colleges as one of the nation’s “Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs’ for a fourth consecutive year by U.S. News and World Report’s America’s Best Colleges.
14th President Appointed
May 3, 2010
Dr. William J. Brennan is appointed the 14th President of Maine Maritime Academy
#1
July 2014
MMA is ranked the #1 Public College in America by Money Magazine
90-Day Cruise
May 2015
Maine Maritime crosses the Atlantic 4 times as a 90-day cruise is put in place because of increased sea time requirements
Rescue at Sea
June 11, 2015
Regimental students aboard the TS State of Maine rescue the captain of the sailing vessel Prodigal during their summer training cruise and are presented with an AMVER pennant by the Coast Guard
#1 Again
July 2015
For a second year in a row, MMA is ranked the #1 Public College in America by Money Magazine
Founders Day
March 22, 2016
The first annual Founders Day celebration at Maine Maritime Academy
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