March 5, 2025
Dear Maritime Nation,
Last week I delivered an update on the state of our college, its financial outlook, and the opportunities before us as the nation’s pre-eminent maritime educational and training institution. As an alumnus, I am deeply familiar with, and a beneficiary of, the advantages of a Maritime College education. As your President, I am committed to ensuring those advantages are available to generations of Maritime students from various backgrounds for many years to come.
To secure a bright future, we must shore up our college’s financial standing. Currently, Maritime College has a structural deficit of $7.7 million. We must take decisive action to address this deficit while ensuring our students continue to receive the high-quality education they — and our industry — rely on us to provide.
To do so, the fiscal stability plan I outlined focuses on four core areas:
- Strong fiscal discipline
- Grow enrollment and retention
- Deep and continuous analysis of every part of the College to inform spending
- Revenue generation
As I said when I first became your president, loyalty, valor and excellence should be inherent in our every thought, word, and action. Maritime is laser-focused on mission-driven academic and applied learning offerings that ensure our students have access to the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the evolving global maritime industry.
Of equal importance is enhancing the college’s visibility to prospective students, including those from populations historically not part of the maritime industry. We can see in our early student deposits for AY25-26 that the targeted enrollment, retention, and brand marketing strategies are making a difference. Through our refocused mission and commitment, these measures will allow us to increase the depth and breadth of the Maritime family.
As we seek to grow our ranks, Maritime must also continue exercising fiscal discipline. We plan to do so through the ongoing implementation of fiscal controls that emphasize informed spending practices and we can already see the difference it is making in the current fiscal year. Continuing this will ensure that only the most prudent expenditures are being made while allowing Maritime to continue offering a world-class education.
To develop this plan, we relied in part on the shared governance process since last fall through the Planning Budget and Assessment Committee and monthly Town Halls. I have every intention of continuing to engage through shared governance as we progress to ensure we are meeting our targets and, as needed, adjusting the measures we must take to stay on target. I welcome your questions and feedback about what lies ahead.
The entire Maritime College leadership team, with the support of SUNY and the Chancellor, are committed to ensuring our continued financial stability while maintaining high-quality educational experiences for our students well into the future. Powered by optimism, I am confident the college can achieve this strategic vision if we work collaboratively and continue to engage in tough but substantive conversations with collegiality.
To a bright future,
John
Rear Admiral John A. Okon ’91, USN (ret), USMS
President
“Students First – Maritime Always”