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The Washington Post ran a timely op-ed by Stephen Flynn calling for a national shipbuilding revival. The USMMA Alumni Association & Foundation, Inc. President/CEO Capt. James F. Tobin followed up with a letter to the editor to make sure two critical points didn’t get lost: we can’t activate a rebuilt fleet without enough Merchant Marine Officers to command them and we can’t execute a military sealift without enough service-obligated Merchant Marine Officers to sail into contested waters. He also pointed out the vast majority of  this cohort are USMMA graduates, who’ve received their training on a campus largely unchanged since its founding in 1943.

In Washington, there’s growing recognition that the nation is woefully unprepared for a major conflict and that our military sealift is not where it should be. Congress is getting serious through bipartisan legislation like the SHIPS for America Act, and the White House has put maritime dominance back on the national security agenda through executive action.

Six bipartisan congressional members of the USMMA’s Board of Visitors sent a letter to U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and federal Management and Budget Director Russell Vought calling for the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy’s modernization plan to be a focal point of the national maritime strategy.

“We cannot rebuild maritime power without first rebuilding the institution that produces the officers who will lead it,” the letter states. “Long-term modernization of USMMA must not be a side initiative—it should be a foundational element of this strategy.”

“Our maritime industry has been outpaced by adversaries not due to a lack of capacity or talent among our mariners, but because they have been underserved by policy, left without the investment and infrastructure they need to compete,” they continued.

This article in RealClearDefense is published in honor of Maritime Day 2025. Thanks to the efforts of many, there is growing recognition of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy’s mission, the value of its militarily obligated graduates, and the urgent need to modernize the Academy’s physical infrastructure.

The op-ed highlights progress made in Washington over the past several months. It is encouraging to see Republicans and Democrats coming together around the goal of restoring America’s maritime strength. The White House, Congress, and the Department of Transportation are united in their commitment to revitalizing U.S. shipbuilding, strengthening military sealift, and investing in the development of militarily obligated Merchant Marine officers—efforts that include long-overdue repairs and upgrades to the USMMA campus.

RealClearDefense published a timely opinion piece by maritime industry leader, Steve Carmel,  who warned that China doesn’t want to lead just on AI; it has similar designs on dominating the seas through a massive investment in its navy and merchant fleet.

Most concerningly, Capt. Carmel, president of U.S. Marine Management (USMMI) and a former member of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Congressional Board of Visitors, is correct.

Former Congressman John J. Faso (R-NY) penned an insightful piece in Newsday on the urgent need to modernize the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy’s (USMMA) Kings Point campus. Rep. Faso’s message will resonate with a growing number of policymakers who recognize that winning any potential conflict with China will depend heavily on a superior military sealift. This sealift is crucial for transporting troops, armaments, tanks, fuel, and other supplies to the front lines.

Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro visited the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) to attend the sponsor naming ceremony for the USS Long Island, the nation’s next nuclear-powered Virginia-Class submarine. While there, he set aside time to address USMMA Midshipmen because he understands the value of service obligated merchant marine officers to our Nation’s maritime strength and national defense. Some highlights of his speech follow.

The Wall Street Journal published an opinion piece about the U.S. Navy’s decision to retire 17 ships from the Military Sealift Command (MSC) as part of a “force generation reset” due to a shortage of mariners.

This decision will only exacerbate existing concerns about the readiness of the nation’s all-important sealift. MSC plays a central role in supporting and sustaining the Navy’s operations, and we cannot win a major war without its ability to execute a sealift. Losing these ships threatens the Navy’s ability to maintain a robust presence and logistical support across key global theaters, notably Eurasia, which is vital for countering threats from China and other potential adversaries.

Slowly but surely, the nation is beginning to recognize that our military sealift is not prepared for an all-out war, be it with China or another major adversary. Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported on the unprecedented strides China is making in its quest to dominate the seas, in large part by bolstering its merchant fleet, which can be mobilized immediately for military logistical use – a crucial reminder that we need to address this issue before it is too late.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office is the latest organization to call out the deteriorating infrastructure at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.  In a jarring report issued on Aug. 6, the GAO pointed to “inadequate and outdated facilities that have been poorly maintained. These facilities exhibit crumbling facades, leaking pipes, and water damage.”

Fifty years ago next week, the first class of women began their education at a federal service academy. It was the lesser-known U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) that broke this glass ceiling, and on July 5, Wall Street commemorated this historic moment for the nation.