Hermosillo-DeBoer completes Merchant Marine Sea Year

Kings Point, NY – Midshipman Zachary Hermosillo-DeBoer, son of Alesia Hermosillo and Michael DeBoer, of Belleville recently completed Sea Year training at the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) at Kings Point, NY.
Hermosillo-DeBoer was nominated by Congresswoman Debbie Dingell of Michigan’s 12th congressional district and is a graduate of Belleville High School.
“The World is Our Campus” is emblematic of Sea Year, the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy’s signature training program where midshipmen spend one year training aboard ocean going vessels.
Midshipman Hermosillo-DeBoer traveled to the Middle East, Far East, Arctic Circle, and U.S. East and West Coasts aboard the USNS Zeus, M/T Florida, and APL Belgium.
Sea Year is fundamental to the world-class maritime education provided by USMMA and is mandated by Congress. It is an immersive program in which midshipmen are assigned to commercial vessels as officers in training to learn maritime skills in a real-world environment and is unique to USMMA – nothing comparable is offered at any other college or university, including the four other federal service academies.
By the end of their Sea Year, midshipmen will have trained on a diverse portfolio of vessels such as container ships, roll-on-roll-off ships, bulk grain and ore ships, and oil tankers.
The United States Merchant Marine Academy is a federal service academy that educates and graduates licensed Merchant Marine officers. In addition to the rigorous academic and physical requirements for admission, applicants must be nominated by their Congressman or Senator.
All USMMA graduates earn both a Bachelor of Science degree and a Merchant Marine Officer license, and incur an obligation to serve the country as an active or reserve officer in the U.S. armed forces.
Last year marked the 75th anniversary of the dedication of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (1943-2018). Dedicated in wartime, USMMA has served the nation in both peace and war. As the first federal academy to admit women, USMMA also celebrated the 40th anniversary of the first women to graduate from any federal service academy. Learn more about the Academy at www.WeAreTheUSMMA.com .