Nine high school students walked out of the Port of Everett on June 10 with U.S. Coast Guard-recognized credentials and, in several cases, job offers waiting — the first graduates of a maritime career program that didn't exist two years ago.

The Maritime Vessel Operations program, a partnership between the Port of Everett, Maritime Institute, and Sno-Isle TECH Skills Center, launched September 8, 2025, with 10 students and put them through a full school year of coursework and waterfront training. Nine completed the program.

Graduates earned three industry credentials: a Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC), a Merchant Mariner Credential (MMC), and Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW-95) certification. Each student also completed 100 hours of on-the-job training at local maritime companies.

The result: every graduate is now eligible to join any U.S. merchant vessel at the entry level.

Several already have. The Port of Everett hired three graduates for its seasonal maintenance team. Dylan Rose, who entered the program interested in welding, completed an internship at Everett Ship Repair after meeting a company representative at a career fair and accepted an apprentice position there. Sidney Nash, hired by the Port, plans to become a marine mechanic.

"I wouldn't know anything about this; it's kind of a hidden industry," Nash said, according to the Port of Everett. "I was thinking that I was going to be a security officer, and now that I've gotten to be on boats, I think this is going to be my career."

Other graduates took positions with Western Towboat, on Bristol Bay fishing boats, or at smaller shipyards, according to the Port. Wesley Wise plans to join the U.S. Coast Guard.

Instructor Brian Hennessy, a retired Coast Guard officer with 20 years of service who now serves as Maritime Institute's Pacific Northwest regional manager, led the cohort through subjects including marine firefighting, personal survival techniques, engine maintenance, and navigation.

Students also spent the year restoring an old sailboat.

Demand for next year has surged. Thirty-six students have signed up for the 2026-27 cohort, nearly quadrupling the pilot class and filling the program to capacity. The Suquamish Tribe has expressed interest in developing a similar program for its young people, according to the Port of Everett.

Port of Everett CEO Lisa Lefeber said at the program's September 2025 launch that the pipeline addresses a regional workforce gap: 60% of Snohomish County jobs are tied to international trade, the highest share of any U.S. county, according to county economic development data.

Washington's maritime industry employs more than 62,000 workers at an average salary of $112,000, per a 2022 Washington Maritime Federation study.

Sno-Isle TECH Skills Center, a cooperative serving more than 40 high schools across 15 districts in Snohomish and south Island counties, had never offered a maritime pathway before this program. The graduation ceremony on June 10 included all nine students taking the Merchant Mariner Oath.

Families interested in the program can contact Sno-Isle TECH Skills Center; applications open each November for the following school year.