Maritime Academy: Job Training
“I didn’t know how to tie a basic knot or even the difference between port and starboard before the Maritime Academy. It was a great introduction to boating and really helped me get up to speed at Belmont.”
—Eric Zirkle, 2022 Maritime Academy graduate
“Our hope is to empower the kids to see all that they can do. Skills like CPR and first aid may also help them make a difference in someone else’s life down the road.”
—Ann Rundle, CYC Foundation Board member and chair, CYCF Maritime Academy Committee
This Foundation initiative teaches Chicago area teens the skills needed to work on Chicago’s many commercial boats. The 18 hours of training included everything from line handling and firefighting to CPR and first aid skills. This year, five students from Chicago Hope Academy graduated from Maritime Academy. In 2022, nearly 30 Chicagoland teens participated in the inaugural season of the Foundation’s Maritime Academy. The two training programs included teens from Fathers Who Care, a community group based in West Garfield Park as well as students from Chicago’s Bowen High School and Rickover Naval Academy.