Shepard was sent back to America when he was 12 to attend Deerfield Academy. From there he went to MMA, graduating in 1946. “I went to sea for a year as 3rd mate on an American Export Lines victory ship,” he recalled. “I dreamed of a commission in the Navy, but the war was over, and the Navy was downsizing. I decided to go to Bowdoin College and graduated in 1950.”

“What do I do now?” he wondered upon graduation. He had met Martha Loughman at Bowdoin and they had fallen in love, so they married, sailed to Turkey, and Shepard began teaching English at Robert College in Istanbul. His father was still the director of the American Hospital and Shepard found himself increasingly drawn to medicine. After three years of teaching English, his mind was made up: he wanted to become a doctor, following the path of his father and grandfather.

Dr. Barclay Shepard’s photos in the 1946 Trick’s End.

Barclay, Martha, and their baby Douglas sailed back to America. “I’d had a biology course at Bowdoin,” recalled Shepard, “but I needed organic and inorganic chemistry to get into medical school. I learned that Harvard offered an intensive six-week course in inorganic chemistry, and I enrolled. It just about killed me, but I made it through. I then went to Boston University for courses in organic chemistry, physics, anatomy, and histology. I applied to several medical schools and was accepted by Tufts. By then, Martha and I had three children, so I joined the Navy to help pay the bills. They paid me as an ensign until I graduated in 1958. During my senior year I was on active duty in the Navy in the Medical Corps. After graduation on June 1958, I was promoted to lieutenant and received orders to start my one-year rotating internship at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. After that I started a four-year residency in general surgery, the last year of which was in the thoracic surgery service where I assisted on the first open-heart operation at Bethesda.”

Following his residency, Shepard was assigned to the Naval Hospital in Beaufort, South Carolina. He was certified by the American Board of Surgery and became a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. After two years at Beaufort, he applied for a residency in thoracic surgery and received orders to the Naval Hospital Long Island (St. Albans) in New York.

It was at this time that U.S. forces were heavily engaged in the Vietnam War. “I decided to volunteer for duty in that arena,” recalled Shepard. “I received orders to report to the USS Repose, one of two hospital ships operating off the coast of Vietnam. I was one of the two Navy thoracic surgeons in Vietnam. It was a long year of treating many kinds of serious battle wounds. I also successfully performed an open-heart operation on a Vietnamese soldier.”

After his one-year tour in Vietnam (1967–68), he returned to St. Albans for two years as the chief of thoracic surgery, followed by two at Bethesda. He was then assigned to the office of the Navy Surgeon General where, for nearly four years, he was the director of the Medical Facilities Planning Division. This job included working on the design and construction of several hospitals and clinics.

In 1979, Shepard retired from active duty after 22 years and moved to the Veterans Administration where his duties included monitoring the surgical departments at all VA hospitals. Shepard recalled, “It was about this time that the controversy about the defoliant Agent Orange was becoming an urgent issue. The VA was being taken to task for not connecting the dots between various health problems of Vietnam veterans and their exposure to Agent Orange. I was assigned to organize a research program to shed more light on this issue. I told them I was not familiar with this type of research, but agreed to do my best.”

Dr. Barclay Shepard’s photos in the 1946 Trick’s End.

Shepard hired an epidemiologist and a statistician who began designing studies to help answer these questions. The first challenge was to find a way to compare groups of soldiers who had been exposed to Agent Orange and those who had not. He quickly found that the Department of Defense personnel records were not very detailed about where and when troops served. Eventually, Shepard and his team were able to identify soldiers who had served in the northern part of South Vietnam who had been on the ground where Agent Orange was sprayed. They also identified the Air Force pilots who had flown the planes doing the spraying. These two groups were the most heavily exposed. At least initially, that study did not show any ill effects of Agent Orange.

Shepard’s team also designed a very large mortality study which revealed that troops who were exposed to Agent Orange had an increased risk of developing two types of cancer: non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and soft tissue sarcoma. At the request of the VA, Congress finally passed the necessary legislation to classify these diagnoses as related to veterans’ military service. Later, additional diseases were added to the list of illnesses caused by Agent Orange.

Back on campus for Homecoming, Shepard reflected on his time at MMA in the 1940s. “It was a wonderful part of my teen years. The midshipmen came from all walks of life, but we were united by our desire to serve our country during a time of war.

“The learning was enjoyable. It was learning by doing, and that was new to me. Lt. Cmdr. Tumey took me under his wing. He taught navigation, and I loved it.”

The 1946 MMA Trick’s End suggests he was not alone in his admiration for Cmdr. Tumey. The class of ’46 dedicated the yearbook to him with “respect and affection.” In the dedication, they wrote, “Mr. Tumey did not fail to infect future deck officers with his love of navigation. [With] hat turned backwards, with sextant in hand and squinting skyward; by these things may we, and countless others, remember him as our preacher with Bowditch as our bible.”

With Tumey remembered holding Bowditch in his hand like a bible, Shepard’s gift of a first edition Bowditch seems to bring the story around full circle.█

Shepard Gives Rare Bowditch Volume to MMA

MMA RECENTLY RECEIVED a first edition (1802) of Nathanial Bowditch’s The American Practical Navigator, a generous gift from Dr. Barclay Shepard ’46. It is a remarkable piece of history that connects to the thousands of MMA alums who have relied on their “Bowditch” to learn navigation. (See p. 19 for a profile of Dr. Shepard and his fascinating life.)

In 1950, Shepard and his wife, Martha, were living in Istanbul where Shepard was teaching at Robert College, and his father was director of American Hospital. One day, Shepard and his parents were browsing at a book sale at the University of Istanbul. “Shep,” called his father, “I think there’s a book here you’d be interested in.” Shepard wandered over and his father handed him the Bowditch first edition. Shepard took it to the book dealer asking, “How much do want for this old book?” “Twenty-five piastre [10 cents],” the book dealer replied, and the book was purchased. A couple years later, Shepard brought it with him when he and his wife returned to the United States for Shepard to enter medical school. Like many another Bowditch, it has traveled on uncounted voyages. But now it is home from sea and at rest at Maine Maritime Academy.

The economy of Maine is diversifying and creating opportunities in offshore renewable energy, expansion of fisheries, and growth in aquaculture. In addition, coastal communities and businesses will need to assess and adapt to environmental change. A deeper understanding of coastal and ocean ecology is critical to the success of these economic opportunities. To sustain Maine’s marine industries, we need to know more about how these systems are driven by marine species at the bottom of the food chain, the ecological and economic vulnerability created by introduced and non-native species, and potential shifts in biological diversity. Biological monitoring is a basic tool to understanding system change. Maine’s workforce needs people capable of monitoring the environment to safeguard the natural resources essential to Maine’s economy.

MMA’s Corning School of Ocean Studies newest program, Coastal and Marine Environmental Science, is using two important new technologies to monitor aquatic ecosystems, thanks to funds from the Maine Economic Improvement Fund (see story at bottom of page). Students in the program are being trained as marine environmental scientists who can work across academia, conservation, resource management, business, and public policy.

Doctors Steven Baer, LeAnn Whitney, and Kerry Whittaker are professors in the Corning School of Ocean Studies. Together, they wrote the grant request to integrate two new technologies into MMA’s ocean studies curriculum that make it possible to collect more and better information about the ocean.

One of these tools, the Yokogawa FlowCam, uses imaging technology combined with software to quickly capture and analyze large amounts of data about phytoplankton. Phytoplankton are single-celled organisms that float in the light-lit surface ocean. They contain chlorophyll, take up carbon dioxide, use sunlight to make carbohydrates, and release oxygen, just like land plants. The FlowCam was invented in Maine and is manufactured and serviced here as well. It uses laser detection and a powerful lens to capture images of plankton (0.01 to 1 millimeter in size). The FlowCam can analyze up to 10,000 plankton cells (or particles) per minute from a sample of seawater. This radically improves monitoring and analyzing phytoplankton communities in the marine environment. The software identifies species and estimates the population of phytoplankton, along with a host of other characteristics.

The three professors have all worked with this technology in labs and in oceans from the Arctic to the Antarctic. “The FlowCam is just objectively cool,” says Dr. Whittaker. “To see what is in a sample of water is just amazing. There is a ton of data and opportunities for analysis.” Freshman Lily Verrill is in “Introduction to Oceanography and Environmental Science,” taught by Drs. Whitney and Whittaker, and agrees. Talking about the FlowCam, Lily said, “The FlowCam is astounding, and it’s really cool how it can group pictures by similarity to a known dataset or even to another picture in the sample! It makes counting and identifying phytoplankton much faster and can capture far better images of microscopic particles and organisms than I can. And it’s not incomprehensible to operate.”

“Maine Maritime Academy is all about active learning. The equipment we have in the lab is not for us—it’s for the students. This equipment is out on the lab bench; it’s available for students to use. This makes MMA unique. We are providing students opportunities that make them valuable in the wider world.”

The other tool new to MMA is a quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) instrument manufactured by BioRad. It can be used to detect and measure the abundance of organisms by analyzing DNA in the environment. This DNA comes from cellular material that was shed by organisms (via skin, secretions, etc.). A sample of sea water can be analyzed with qPCR to learn what organisms have been in the area. PCR uses short synthetic DNA fragments called primers to select a segment of the genome to be amplified, and then multiple rounds of DNA synthesis to amplify that segment. (You may have read about PCR in descriptions of how vaccines are produced quickly and in large volume.) For the qPCR instrument to work, it needs to be prepared with species-specific (or gene-specific) “primers” that will then seek out the DNA scientists are interested in finding in an environmental sample. Once the primers find the complementary DNA in the sample, that DNA is amplified, and the instrument can quantify the abundance of the gene. For instance, it might show that a particular species of salmon swam through the area recently. This is important for the early detection of invasive species as well as for detecting rare species.

MMA graduates trained in these technologies will contribute to Maine in important ways. They will bolster Maine’s environmental science workforce with skills needed for Maine’s economy to grow. Their work will foster coastal Maine research collaborations and improve the technological capacity for important biological monitoring that will support coastal and marine economies.

“This is workforce development,” Dr. Whitney emphasizes. “We are getting students trained on how to use this technology and how to apply the knowledge they gain. They are ready to do this work when they graduate. We worked with stakeholders as we were developing the grant request. We asked them how they’d like to see this equipment used. What could be helpful to them? We got support from at least half a dozen agencies confirming that students with these skills would be beneficial to their work. This project is unique because we aren’t just focusing on a research project or idea. We acquired the equipment and are training our students for jobs that our stakeholders have available.”

“I enjoy learning by doing,” Dr. Whitney continues. “And I love giving students that same opportunity I enjoy. Maine Maritime Academy is all about active learning. The equipment we have in the lab is not for us—it’s for the students. This equipment is out on the lab bench; it’s available for students to use. This makes MMA unique. We are providing students opportunities that make them valuable in the wider world. It’s not about some professor’s research. It’s about students learning and applying that learning.”

Dr. Whittaker agrees. “We are training MMA students in this technology of environmental DNA. They monitor how the oceans are changing. They are learning how primary producers (phytoplankton) are changing. For instance, this can alert us to algal blooms. These can be harmful to humans, to shellfish, to other food sources. They can close a fishery for months.”

This monitoring and reporting are not just for scientific interest. They link directly to coastal resilience and the ability of Maine coastal economies to continue thriving. These new techniques produce more data than was previously possible. “It profoundly enhances our ability to monitor the marine environment,” says Dr. Whittaker. “Students are excited about what they are seeing and learning. They are learning genetics, but not just learning genetics as a stand-alone topic. They are using genetics as a tool to answer important ecological questions.”█

(Above) Student watercolor of Ditylum brightwelli, a species of phytoplankton. Students draw and paint organisms seen through the FlowCam to sharpen their observation and identification skills.

UMaine Small Campus Initiative Funds High-Tech Equipment

In 1997, Maine created the Maine Economic Improvement Fund (MEIF). Its purpose was to advance research at Maine’s public universities that would, in turn, improve the civic and economic life of Maine. Twelve years later, the University of Maine created the Small Campus Initiative (SCI) to provide MEIF to the five smaller University of Maine campuses (University of Maine at Machias, University of Maine at Farmington, University of Maine at Augusta, University of Maine at Fort Kent, and University of Maine at Presque Isle) and Maine Maritime Academy. The decision to include Maine Maritime Academy with the UMaine small campuses was important recognition of MMA’s value to Maine. MMA has a strong history of providing an excellent education combined with a practical focus on workforce training. It is recognized for producing graduates trained and ready to join Maine’s workforce as scientific and engineering professionals.

The SCI added the energy and talents of faculty at the smaller UMaine campuses and Maine Maritime Academy to Maine’s research sector. The emphasis was on applying new technology for economic growth and training students in those technologies. It was expected that the results would create technology jobs and build stronger relationships among Maine’s research and business sectors. The result would be increased research efforts, new technologies with licensing and commercialization potential, and creation of jobs that would be filled by a high-tech workforce developed at the participating schools.

“This program is really about building capacity for research and development in the state with a focus on primarily undergraduate institutions like MMA where field-based and experiential learning are key parts of the funded grant projects,” says Jason Charland, who serves as the program officer for the MEIF SCI program. “MMA faculty can receive grant writing training and consult with research development staff at UMaine. Inclusion of MMA faculty in the grant writing workshops has been a great new initiative of the program and also helps facilitate relationships and collaborations with colleagues at University of Maine System campuses.”

ON A BRISK SEPTEMBER MORNING the newly planted grasses are still wet on Leavitt Lawn as students assemble for muster in the Logan Oakley Field House. There’s one figure who’s been up and hammering away at his computer since before dawn and is now making his rounds, shaking hands with cadets as they take formation. Maine Maritime Academy’s 15th President Jerry S. Paul (“JP” to all who know him) has just begun his first academic year in the top post at the Academy. To be found among the students and supporting them is not a rarity for JP. If asked, it would likely be one of the first goals of his day and it doesn’t go unnoticed. “He is highly respected among the campus as someone we know to be incredibly candid and authentic. He loves to hear from the students about what is going on in their lives,” said Natalie Samuels, Regimental Commander, Marine Transportation Operations, class of ’23.

While the incoming freshmen are new to MMA, JP is not. A 1989 alumnus, he arrived in April 2022 to assume his new role. Between selection and investiture, he spent months meeting with everyone from students to alumni to staff—nearly 400 meetings in all. His goal? A listening campaign that would give him a quick start on his newest challenge. His approach drew praise from Bobby Vagt, former president of Davidson University in North Carolina. “One of the things that impressed me right off the bat, having been in his shoes, is that he got two things right from the beginning. He expressed absolute positivity about the institution’s future, and he had no pretense that he had all the answers.” Vagt and his wife, Ruth Anne, are Castine residents and were some of the first to welcome the Pauls to town.

Marrying in 1988, JP and Kristy spent their first year as newlyweds in Castine while he finished his fourth year at MMA. In the time spanning their departure from MMA and return more than three decades later, Paul has had posts all over the world in both the public and private sectors. One thing has remained consistent—his work in the maritime and energy fields.

President Paul with wife Kristy.

After graduating from MMA, he studied nuclear engineering at the University of Florida and practiced as a reactor engineer at commercial nuclear plants. He then graduated from law school and started practicing law in 1995, during which time he also served as an elected member of the Florida legislature where he chaired subcommittees on appropriations and environmental regulation.

Appointed by the President of the United States in 2004 to run the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) as its COO and Principal Deputy Administrator, Paul oversaw the agency’s nuclear nonproliferation programs, defense nuclear facilities, and the U.S. Naval reactors program. His principle responsibilities were preventing the illicit spread of nuclear materials, technology, and expertise, managing the agency’s $10 billion budget, and overseeing both national laboratories and field offices worldwide. NNSA’s sense of mission—not to mention the responsibilities that came with it—have shaped the lens through which Paul sees much of what happens at MMA.

When first approached regarding the search for a new president, Paul couldn’t help but wonder what it would feel like to visit MMA with the perspective gained through his career. He saw intersections of his past and MMA’s future everywhere. “During my time at NNSA, the driving force was being a part of something that really mattered, not only on a large geographic scale, but in diplomatic relations with countries worldwide. This was a post-9/11 world with technological and resource threats to America. That challenge provided extraordinary motivation for a role that was far greater than just a job,” reflected Paul.

When Paul and his wife began discussing a return to Castine, he reflected on the importance of state maritime academies and their role supporting America’s strategic interests. He is quick to relate the importance of teamwork to the regimental leadership program at Maine Maritime Academy. “The core mission that makes MMA different from other colleges is that we’re producing licensed mariners that America needs for its maritime interests, including its national security. It’s worth doing. It matters.” His oft-repeated refrain is “We ARE Mariners. We MAKE Mariners. We are THE Mariners.” Creating mariners is a hot topic among the maritime industry. MMA is answering the increasing demands from Congress and the U.S. Maritime Administration to produce more licensed mariners.

When asked how these new offerings will help students prepare for a future beyond their time in Castine, Paul is bullish on the shipping industry. “We’re on the precipice of what may be the greatest era in U.S. maritime history. I’d also argue that we can be on the precipice of what could be the greatest era for Maine Maritime Academy,” he said. When asked to state his vision, he does not hesitate in stating that MMA can become “The #1 Maritime College in the World.”

That enthusiasm appeals to Alumni Association President Bill Full. “The alumni are certainly excited to have fellow alumnus Jerry Paul leading the Academy,” said Full. “With his experience, enthusiasm, and energy, we know that, working together, we can face the challenges and capture the opportunities to make the future for MMA a bright one.”

The thoughtful vision for what current students will need to enter a future maritime workforce was important to Maine Maritime’s Board Chair Jason Oney ’96. “It is critically important for any leader to understand what their operational needs are. Jerry went above and beyond—even before he arrived on campus—to familiarize himself with Maine Maritime’s strengths, challenges, and opportunities—internally and externally.”

As the global maritime industry focuses on reducing the environmental footprint of nearly 50,000 ships active on the seas, the International Maritime Organization is beyond mere suggestions of best practices and good ideas. There are mandated rules with aggressive targets to reduce the carbon footprint significantly within short periods of time. As Paul explains, “These rules are now driving a tremendous amount of investment in the private sector to figure out what technologies can help us do that. Concepts range from low-sulphur diesel fuel to ammonia to fuel cells. Liquefied natural gas will probably transition to methanol. All require a technology development to which MMA can contribute and the type of hands-on training that is the MMA brand.”

In reference to MMA’s Ocean Studies program, Paul poses a question. “If we are going to use two-thirds of the world’s surface—oceans—to transport goods and services, can we be better stewards of the oceans themselves? For example, our ocean studies programs have a unique role researching and developing methods for decarbonization.”

“International business and logistics is a field for which MMA’s curriculum prepares our students,” continues Paul. “Throughout the pandemic many people discovered the impact that supply chain backlogs had on daily life. But MMA students are at the forefront of these challenges. The impact of logistics and how we move products from factory to the doorstep went from being an insider’s game to an everyday concern that everybody now values.”

“It is critically important for any leader to understand what their operational needs are.
Jerry went above and beyond—even before he arrived on campus—to familiarize himself with Maine Maritime’s strengths, challenges, and opportunities—internally and externally.”

—MMA Board Chair Jason Oney ’96

Diving into the academic offerings with an eye toward preparing the next generation of Mariners hasn’t been JP’s only goal. He’s paying attention to MMA’s culture. He refers to “The Mariner Standard” as a high regard for honor, respect, integrity, and leadership. It’s the belief that working towards a common goal with mutual respect creates better outcomes. He applies this concept of respect to ensuring that the campus culture has equal access, equal opportunity, and respect for the diversity of all persons regardless of gender, race, religion, or national origin. This effort matches the increased awareness of these topics in the industry overall and he hopes that MMA students will be leaders on these topics.

Paul’s examples in leadership cascade into his relations with student leaders as well. RC MTO Samuels offered, “I have been immensely grateful for President Paul’s commitment to his student leaders. He often checks in, gives advice, and has made it clear he cares about what I’m doing by constantly offering his help. I know I can talk to him about what I’m working on and what my long-term goals are. We touch base on what the two of us can do together to make MMA the best college experience possible for those who attend here. It means a lot to me knowing he has my back and is interested in helping me become the best leader I can be.”

As active as Paul is on campus, he remains aware of MMA’s important relationship with Castine. “As an alum I am certainly proud of MMA’s 80-year history. But the town of Castine has been here for 400 years and it has lived through many cycles. Castine always finds a way to rise to a new level and I feel personally that we are entering one of the best phases for Castine. Kristy and I feel fortunate to be here and play a role.” He also says that it is a source of pride to see Castine leverage its history by once again producing a new ship, the National Security Multi-Mission Vessel, on its waterfront.

Paul states that MMA truly is different. He becomes animated as he explains a “get it done” attitude that is intrinsic to the Maine culture and to the core of the Academy. During his recent convocation address, he quoted MMA’s 2022 MMA Scholar Athlete Claire Felix, who said, “We’ve all found a way to do it. That’s what being a Mariner is all about.”

“Greeting students as I walk the path between Leavitt and the waterfront or from the mess hall to a classroom, having a quick breakfast or lunch with a student, or joining students on a sail out to Holbrook Island—that’s the good stuff. That’s the best part.”

He’s passionate about direct interactions with students, and as a former MMA student, feels a deep connection with them. He draws energy from immersion within their ranks. “My favorite part of the job is the students themselves. I experienced some of that with Ken Curtis [11th MMA President, former Governor of Maine, and MMA alumnus]. He was a joy to watch in action throughout campus. I sensed that he wasn’t just doing it as part of the job, but that he thoroughly enjoyed being with students.” The same will likely be said for JP, who is often found among the undergraduates, learning about their work, their challenges and their joys, their student experience, or just the kind of day they’re having. During the recent “ship jump,” after going first into the water, he stayed at the water’s edge and personally greeted each student until the last had finished. “We spoke about the importance of engagement and being a part of what happens on campus. It is something I know Jerry has been passionate about and is actively doing, both in town and at the school, and it shows,” reflected Vagt.

A young Jerry Paul in uniform from his MMA yearbook.

“Well, I have thoroughly enjoyed that aspect here, quite frankly, more than any other,” says JP, who regularly visits classrooms to see students and faculty firsthand. “Greeting students as I walk the path between Leavitt and the waterfront or from the mess hall to a classroom, having a quick breakfast or lunch with a student, or joining students on a sail out to Holbrook Island—that’s the good stuff. That’s the best part.”█