Eight Bells
Former MMA Superintendent
Edward A. (Ted) Rodgers
died February 18, 2016 in Florida. Ted was 98. He
graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1940
with the rank of ensign and from flight school
as a naval aviator. In early 1941, he was assigned
to the aircraft carrier Lexington, then based in
Pearl Harbor. Just five days prior to the Japanese
attack of the harbor, the carrier shipped out for
Midway Island with Ted serving as Duty Officer.
Subsequently, after the declaration of war and
new orders, Lexington went hunting for Japanese
targets for a week. Upon return to Hawaii a week
later, Ted found the battleship Utah, sunk in
Lexington's berth.
Following the war, he continued as a naval avi-
ator for 20 years. He became Commander of the
Weymouth Naval Air Station in Massachusetts,
and received both a Bachelor's and Master's of
Science in Aviation Engineering at Massachusetts
Institute of Technology. In 1962, he was appoint-
ed Professor of Naval Science at Harvard where
he was also Head of the NROTC. Ted retired after
28 years of service at the rank of Navy Captain
in 1964.
He immediately was appointed Superintendent
of MMA with the rank of Rear Admiral in the
Merchant Service. He is credited with leading
the academy through a challenging period and
helping shape it into one of the world's foremost
maritime service academies. MMA evolved
from a three-year technical school into a ful y
accredited four-year college, enrollment grew
and became coeducational, millions of dol ars
in capital improvements took place, and he led
other significant changes in most every area of
Academy life.
In 1984, Ted retired to spend time with his
wife Marguerite, his family and friends.
He provided charitable service work for sever-
al organizations and played a competitive game
of tennis until this past year. Maintaining his
Naval Academy friendships, from 1964 onward,
he organized and hosted Class of '40 reunions
every year at MMA and then his home in Orland,
Maine. He celebrated his 75th reunion last year
at Annapolis, where he was one of two alumni of
the surviving class to attend.
mainemaritime.edu
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