Current plans for this year’s summer sea term are that Maine cadets and faculty will share Texas A&M Maritime Academy’s training ship, TS Kennedy, with Texas cadets and faculty. Next summer, Maine Maritime will have its new training ship, and Texas cadets and faculty will cruise with us while waiting for their new training ship to be delivered. Students will be transported by bus from Castine to Bangor International Airport, then by charter aircraft to Houston, then by bus from Houston to Galveston, and then board the Kennedy on the afternoon of May 5.

Cruise this summer will be 73 days, which is actually slightly shorter than last year’s cruise. 74 days is the usual standard for the length of our summer sea terms.

The Kennedy is equipped with Starlink technology, so you will be able to communicate with your student in whatever way you normally do; Facetime, email, text, etc. Many families find that WhatsApp is convenient. Do keep in mind that the ship will be in different time zones for much of the cruise, so your student may be asleep when it’s convenient for you to communicate with them, or they may be on watch. They will answer you when they’re able to.

In case of an emergency, please contact the Dean of Students, Blossom Thao, at (207) 326-2138 or blossom.thao@mma.edu. Blossom will communicate with the Commandant’s Staff embarked on the ship with your students and the situation will be handled as expeditiously as possible.

Each port visit is four days in length: arrival day, two in-port days, and departure day.

You can certainly communicate with your student while the ship is in port. We recommend investigating a limited international calling plan with mobile carriers as that will help limit the amount of money spent on calls.

You may visit with your student while the ship is in port; however, keep in mind that the company on watch is not allowed to leave the ship that day, so be sure to find out from your student what their watch schedule is before making plans. At this time, no overnight liberty for students is anticipated.

Every student will be afforded the opportunity to spend at least one day on liberty in each port. The watch schedule rotates to make as equitable a distribution of liberty days as possible.

Each student was sent a survey from Chartwells, which is the food service provider for Texas A&M, regarding any food allergies and/or dietary restrictions, so that they had the opportunity to communicate allergies and needs ahead of time.

We highly recommend that you make sure your student has enough medication to last the entire cruise before going aboard for the sea term. It can be very difficult to fill prescriptions in other ports and particularly in foreign countries.

There will be no mail allowed to be delivered to the ship during port calls, which is why no mailing addresses are posted. If there is an emergency, and the student requires something which has to be mailed, they will be encouraged to discuss that with the Commandant’s Staff and a decision will be made at that time.

It sometimes happens that a student needs to go home during cruise. This can be for a variety of reasons including an illness/death in the family, etc. Should this happen, your student will communicate that with you. They will be sent home from the next port. Costs for transportation for Maine students will be paid for by the Academy and then rolled into their student bill the following semester.

Days at sea begin with breakfast and morning formation at 7 a.m. followed by cleaning stations. From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., on days at sea, two companies will be in the classroom (or out on the deck, or down in the engine room) undergoing training; two companies will be serving as ship’s maintenance, doing everything from plumbing repairs to painting; two companies will be on watch; and two companies will be assigned as ship’s utility, doing special cleaning or other projects. All students break from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. for lunch and afternoon formation at 1 p.m. After 4 p.m., students may change into a relaxed uniform and participate in activities such as paint night, chess tournaments, movie nights, and so forth. Students also have homework for their classes as well as a cruise project to complete while at sea. In port, there is no training. Two companies stand watch while the other six are combined utility and maintenance; once all ship’s work is completed (normally between 10 a.m. and noon), liberty is sounded and students are free to change into civilian clothes to spend time ashore. Liberty expires at 10 p.m. for those on their freshman cruise and midnight for those on their junior cruise.

Texas A&M’s student services are working on planning excursions in each port. Students will be able to sign up for these if they wish, or they may choose to spend the day on their own or with friends, shopping, going to the beach, etc.

Maine students will have two weeks pierside in Galveston before the ship leaves and can use that time to pick up anything they may have forgotten and need to bring with them on the ship. They’ll have liberty on those afternoons (when not on watch), and will be able to either visit the campus bookstore, or take a taxi or Uber out in town to purchase any necessary items.

We are unsure whether parents will be able to watch the ship’s departure but recommend visiting TAMMA’s website at Texas A&M Maritime Academy – Texas A&M Galveston, TX for more information.

A limited amount of summer storage will be available in Curtis Hall. Students with a considerable amount of things needing to be stored might consider getting a storage unit; storage is available in both Penobscot and Bucksport.

Students will need to bring uniform items, personal hygiene items, school supplies, a limited amount of civilian attire for in-port liberty, dryer sheets (but no laundry soap) if they would like them, a sleeping bag, pillow, and towels. Lists will be posted for the students in each of the Canvas courses for their specific sea term.

Cruise will end for Maine students after noon on July 15 in Portland, Maine, at the Portland Ocean Gateway terminal. This pier is only about four miles from the Portland airport and bus station. Students may be picked up from the area outside the Portland Ocean Gateway or may take a taxi or Uber to the airport/bus station. Students needing to come back to Castine will have the opportunity to communicate that with the Commandant’s Staff and arrangements will be made to transport them back to Castine.