Hometown: Menomonie, WI

Thesis Title: The Design and Construction of a Multipurpose Buoyancy-Driven Underwater Glider

Post Graduate Plans: Salvage Naval Architect at Resolve Marine Group

What was your favorite Winter Work internship?
Sophomore year Seaterm was my favorite. Incredible opportunity to go to Australia and Antarctica as well as do good work with amazing people. I got to do a bunch of different things in the engine room and learned a lot!

What activities were you involved with at Webb?
I was on Women’s Basketball/Tennis, SO (President), Student and Faculty Honor Council, COGAS, MEOW, WOW, Leadership Committee (Chair), Student Advisory Committee, Title IX Committee, Sophomore Chairs (Library and Student Store), Middle States Accreditation Team, and the list goes on. Also I had the pleasure of participating in a wide breadth of other volunteering work such as Engineering Day, Welwyn Cleanup, Ronald McDonald House, Strategic Plan Retreat, etc.

What will you miss the most about Webb?
I will miss the community and the people the most. Also Barney.

Do you have any advice for incoming students?
Work hard, but enjoy your time at Webb. It is such a positive experience with the opportunities (from socially to professionally to leadership and even athletically), so don’t let those opportunities pass you by and forget to enjoy what Webb has to offer outside of the classroom.

About Junior Class Small Vessel Design Project (SD1):

As a part of Professor Bradley D.M. Golden’s ’99 Ship Design 1 (SD1) class, the juniors spent the first two-and-a-half months of the spring semester preparing their first complete concept designs.

Using the knowledge they’ve gained in their nearly three years studying at Webb and the experiences from their winter work periods to date, this was the students’ first opportunity to apply the naval architecture and marine engineering principles they’ve studied including stability, ship’s structures, main machinery systems, auxiliary systems, resistance and propulsion, and electrical engineering.

Working in small groups of three and four, the students selected one of the vessel types and took their first couple of spins around the design spiral to prepare vessel concept designs. To help make the project as realistic as possible, members of industry familiar with each of the vessel types helped prepare the statements of design requirements that each of the designs had to meet. To challenge the students even further, one or two “curveballs” were thrown into each design statement to make the students think long and hard about how they would achieve their objectives.

At the end of the spring semester, the students presented their final designs to their fellow students, faculty, and members of industry who served as part of an evaluation team. After three years at Webb, the Junior class can now say with confidence that they’re familiar with the design process and are well on their way to joining the fields of naval architecture and marine engineering.

Visit our Junior Class Small Vessel Design Project page to view all of this year’s projects.

Project Name: C.T.H.U.L.H.U SSV

Designers: Ian Cosic, Dillon Esposito-Kelly, Bret Sharman, and Cross Weeks

Vessel Type: Salvage Support Vessel

Standard Mission:
The standard anticipated mission of the vessel is the oil extraction of RULET wrecks. For this purpose, the vessel is outfitted with subsea oil extraction system, and dive capability to 150ft. The vessel is also capable of installation of a deck mounted 3 chamber saturation diving system for deeper wrecks. Also, the vessel is capable of towing a barge by the hip or over the stern. The vessel is outfitted with a 30 Lt crane to transfer iso tanks between vessels and aid in any salvage operations.

View the Student’s Presentation

Hometown: Massapequa, NY

Thesis Title: A Technical Description and Comparison of Renaissance Period Venetian Ship Construction to Liberty Ship Construction

Post Graduate Plans: Work as a Naval Architect.

Do you have any advice for incoming students?
My biggest advice for incoming students would be to remember to have some fun while at Webb. Webb’s workload can seem overwhelming and stressful at times but it is important to take the time to enjoy time with your class. Your class is your family and you’ll regret not spending time with them.

What activities were you involved with at Webb?
While at Webb I was part of the keel boat sailing team and played on the Webb volleyball team. In addition, I took the time to participate in Webb’s Student Organization (SO) when I was treasurer and Marine Technology Society (MTS) chair.

Favorite Quote.
You can’t get so hung up on where you’d rather be, that you forget to make the most of where you are

What’s your favorite spot on campus and why?
My favorite spot on campus would be the yacht club. Some of my best memories were spent at the yacht club during yacht club socials or just relaxing with friends.

What will you miss the most about Webb?
More than anything else I will miss my class. We have grown so close as a family and it will be hard to not see them every day. COVID-19 made this extremely evident as we were rapidly separated without getting the chance to spend our last semester together.

In no specific order.

Concept Design and Economic Feasibility Study of a Modular
Underwater Apartment: A Case Study at Webb Institute

Ian Cavanaugh and Duane Lee

Underwater structures have already been proven to be an innovative solution in the luxury hotel/restaurant industries. This thesis explores if an underwater apartment is a feasible alternative housing option to address housing shortages around the world, especially for areas with rising sea levels. The concept design of the apartment is created with economic feasibility in mind to attempt to make this alternative housing option as affordable as possible while providing all necessities that a normal land house provides. To make this project as practical as possible, Webb Institute is used as a sample case study. 

by Isa Hill ’20

When the news hit that Webb was closing for the semester and that students would have to take classes remotely, it was a shock for everyone. We, at Webb, are not accustomed to change. For some, home was not an option due to an at-risk relative, hands-on thesis, or other reasons. Thankfully, our Webb family was here to help. Eighteen students stuck around on campus, and we are experiencing a whole new Webb.

First, nearly all of the staff has left campus. Those of us who are still here had to take on a lot of the responsibilities of the staff that can no longer come in to support the campus. Chef Rob still cooks for us during the week, but we now help with dishes and cook our own meals on the weekends. Some of the staff who have stayed on campus, including Josie, Marissa, President Michel, and Rhonda have taken on new chores as well.

Another new aspect of life on campus is that a small group of us now have run of the whole place, including the new building. We can spread-out all-over campus to study, we can use the whole school’s pub and student kitchen (SK) stock, and we can use every couch and television on campus. Some have taken this to a greater extreme than others (see photo above).

Though so much has changed, and the campus is quite a bit emptier, some things never change at Webb. For one thing, our beautiful campus is jumping into spring with no care for coronavirus. The old and new cherry trees all over campus have bloomed, and the spring weather has begun.

Another thing that never changes is that we find ways to get away from our work. With the run of campus, and no way to leave, we even get outside quite a bit (a shock for Webb students, I know). We have found every possible way to entertain ourselves on campus. One student fixed up a motorbike that has spent years in the student garage so that we could race it on the dirt field that is the soccer field. Some students have taken on campus improvement, clearing out old storage spaces and fixing broken things around campus.

Even as we sit in the dining hall with a seat between each person, gather in groups no larger than five, and take classes on our computers in separate rooms, life still goes on at Webb. We miss the rest of our Webb family, and we wish we could have our usual spring party line-up, but we’ve found a new way to live at Webb. We have learned to adapt to the new Webb: to clean up after ourselves, to share everything from snacks to school supplies, to stay in touch with the outside world only through our computers (okay so not much has changed there), and to support each other through this crazy time. Though the semester doesn’t look quite like it normally does, the Webb family continues both on and off-campus. All our love to our family, friends, and classmates at home!

A Note from the Underclassmen at Webb:

by Shannon Liu ’21

For the underclassmen, we aren’t exactly near most of our classmates.  Although, we have made it work out. The juniors have an online classroom setting through Discord, and weekly JackBox game nights through Zoom and sometimes Discord depending on the internet connection. Most of our assignments these days are group or partner assignments, but we have been making it work. Distance just makes the heart grown fonder, and I think the reunion in the fall will be a very energetic one.

by Jack Otto ’23

On November 16th, 298 Crescent Beach Road was transformed into what seemed like the Las Vegas Strip. With Blackjack, Texas Hold-em, Roulette, and even lottery cards for Webbies to gamble their allotted 500 Webb Bucks, it was a night of excitement.

After a few hours, the excitement moved out of the Visconti Reception Room and into the gym, where the live events were taking place. The first event was the three-person horse race, where three members of each class would come together to form a horse and a jockey. The teams would then proceed in a two-lap race around the gym. The freshman got out to a great start with the seniors and juniors close behind and the sophomores way in the back. The seniors took a tumble on the backstretch of lap one and the sophomores got caught up in the wreck. The freshman took the first lap with the juniors close behind but gaining fast. The juniors passed the freshman on the home stretch to take first, however they were disqualified for their horse breaking apart in the middle of the race and the freshman won.

The next event was an arm-wrestling tournament where many students faced off to see who the heavyweight champion of Webb is. After six rounds of single-elimination tournament matches, David ’22 was crowned victorious. This event was followed by the lightweight championship of Webb between two members of the class of ’20, Duane and Mary. This was a one-match; winner takes all event that lasted five thrilling minutes. It ended with Duane defending his title and the crushing defeat of Mary.

The last live event of the night was the surprise event by the seniors, where they took a clean oil drum and attached it to a spring and a handle, for a makeshift bull riding. This was a very exciting event that sent Webbies flying all over the gym. The winner of this event, Ian ’20, took a different approach to the grip, by grabbing the back of the “bull” which prevented him from flying off the front.

The class of 2020 were the organizers of the event and oversaw the events that were planned as well as the silent auction at the end of the night, where Webbies bid on the items with their winnings of the night. The night was a huge success and would not have been possible without the huge support from the class of 2020.

Freshman, George Hambleton, recounts his Orientation Experience

By George Hambleton ’23

I was not sure what to expect when I came to Webb. I knew the degree path was something I wanted to pursue but I had reservations about moving away from my friends. I was going in blind since I had not communicated with any of my new classmates and it was my first time moving out of my home state of Florida. However, after I arrived at Webb, I was happily surprised by the number of activities planned for the class to get to know each other. We had a clue hunt around Webb, a drawing class, beach trip, and a scavenger hunt in New York City. These activities really helped me connect with my classmates and feel comfortable at Webb.

I particularly found the clue hunt around Webb helpful. We were given tours during our prospective freshman visits and at the beginning of orientation, but it was the clue hunt that helped me understand the layout of campus best. For the hunt, we were given short riddles or picture clues and then we had to find the location the clue was directing us towards. It took my group all over campus, so I was able to navigate myself around campus and really figure out where everything is located. The hunt was run by upperclassmen, so it also helped me meet some of the other students. My experiences with the clue hunt and other activities have made Webb feel like home.

Our Winter Work term is a mandatory program for all students that takes place every January and February where our students spread out across the globe to gain real-life working experience.

Freshmen work alongside ship fitters and welders in shipyards. Sophomores serve as student observers aboard ocean-going ships to gain hands-on understanding and appreciation for the relationships between the marine environment, the shipping industry, the ship’s operators, and the ship’s design. Juniors and seniors network and apply themselves in design and engineering offices around the world.

See where our Webbies are this Winter Work Term! 

Please note the class of 2021 are on ships and not included on this map.

Read Student First-Hand Experiences

NASSCO is STEEL-ing Our Hearts

Juliette ’22 and Kevin ’22 will attempt to navigate both working at a General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard in San Diego and cooking edible meals.

Boomin’ in Bama

Follow Chris ’22 and Sasha ’22 during their winter internship at Metal Shark Boats in Bayou La Batre, AL.

Sandy Eggos

In her blog, Sarah ’19 documents her internship at GD Nassco in San Diego.

List of Winter Work term companies and their locations:

Class of 2019

Class of 2020

Class of 2021 (On ocean-bound ships)

Class of 2022

by Kevin O’Keefe ’22

When I first arrived at Webb, I was honestly afraid of what was waiting for me. I had talked over the summer with most of my classmates prior to Orientation Week, but I still had not really known these people that I would be spending the next four years with. Thankfully, because of the activities and events my new classmates and I took part in during Orientation Week, we were able to become close and get to know each other very well in a short amount of time.

Orientation, even though it lasted less than a week, was the best time I have ever had. It felt like a lifetime of fun experiences, with each day feeling like several. We had so many great experiences, from the clue run, which helped me learn the layout of the school, to the scavenger hunt in New York City. The scavenger hunt was by far the greatest of the activities we did during the week. The scavenger hunt had us do so many crazy things throughout the city for points. My favorite of all of them was trying on wedding dresses in Macy’s with my group. Oddly enough, the people there were really into it and they all wanted to take videos and pictures with us.

Going into my first year as a Webbie, I hope to learn to properly manage this new environment and still have fun!

Kevin and his classmates participating in the wedding dress challenge during the NYC Scavenger Hunt.

FLUSHING, N.Y. — Third-seeded Webb Institute won four singles matches to come from behind to defeat the Culinary Institute of America, 5-4, to claim the 2018 Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday afternoon at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

The Webbies (5-2) upended the top two seeds to secure their first title, handing the regular-season champion Steels (6-1) their first loss of the season and snapping their two-year reign atop the conference.

Culinary and Webb both earned spots in the final with 5-1 victories in their semifinal matches over Vaughn and Pratt, respectively.

The Steels took a 2-1 lead after the doubles session with the No. 2 pair of Alex Cordell and Eduardo Guevara earning a break at 7-6 and held to close out an 8-6 win.

In the singles play, Webb’s Kevin Prichard cruised to a 10-2 win at the No. 6 position to level the overall match before Culinary’s Cassidy Seo and Wonil Chung posted the next two points at No. 1 and No. 3 singles to move back ahead 4-2.

With Webb pulling away at No. 4 and No. 5 singles, the No. 2 match between Webb’s Oscar Como and Culinary’s Guevara proved to be the decisive match. Guevara battled through cramps to try to salvage the title for the Steels, but Como closed him out 10-5, to be the only player in the final two secure two points. Shortly after Como’s match went final, Luke Herbermann and Galen Ng both wrapped up the first title for the Webbies with matching 10-4 victories.