Southeast Maritime and Transportation (SMART) Center

The Southeast Maritime and Transportation (SMART) Center strives to increase the pipeline of educated, credentialed technicians working in the maritime and transportation industry. By scaling the SMART Maritime Technologies pathway, the SMART Center will build on the registered apprenticeship model which incorporates in-demand industry certifications and academic courses that confer college credit toward degrees. Work includes adaptation of successful SMART Center career pathway tools to each of the four maritime transportation industry sectors: shipbuilding and ship repair, seagoing/vessel operations, marine logistics/port services, and emerging maritime-dependent offshore industries. The SMART Center will also build a replicable education model for the emerging maritime-dependent offshore wind energy industry by identifying competencies needed for academic and industry credentials and creating relevant courses.

The SMART Center's four high-level goals are to increase career awareness, expand the SMART Center digital repository of industry competencies, deliver scalable models of industry-validated professional development built on existing partnerships, and model effective industry and educator partnerships to maintain national focus on maritime and transportation industry workforce needs.