Thank You!

The generosity and commitment of Webb alumni is unrivalled.

Jake M. Neuman ’93, Chairman of the Webb Alumni Fund

Contributions totaled $2,092,942, exceeding last year’s amount by $205,000 (10.8%), and our 2016-17 goal by 20%. The average commitment of Webb alumni increased to $2,600 (up 13%). Participation was solid at 73.2% for alumni and 70.9% for members of the Alumni Association overall.

These phenomenal results have made a significant impact on the comprehensive Campaign for Webb, which is discussed in detail in a number of articles in the 2016-17 Annual Report. Eighty-one percent of alumni participated by making a contribution during the Campaign to date—this is clear evidence that we are capable of exceeding our participation goals of 75%. To accomplish this, we will need to convince a few more alumni to renew their generous commitments every year. Our alumni base is extraordinarily supportive, so I am confident we can reach new heights in WAF participation.

Please continue your strong support of Webb, so it can continue to be the excellent academic and enriching place we know. Also, please make your best effort to donate by Webb’s Giving Day in mid-May, which each year coincides with Homecoming. Thirty-six percent of WAF donors contribute in the final weeks of the Alumni Fund effort, which puts a lot of pressure on Class Agents who work diligently to maximize class participation. If we can convince more of our steadfast supporters to give earlier in the year, we can focus more of our energy on securing support from those who have never given or those who make gifts only on special occasions such as milestone class reunions.

You are an amazing group of people, and I continue to enjoy serving in my alumni fund capacity through developing new relationships with alumni and students, as well as strengthening the ones already existing. See you at Homecoming!

Webb Institute is proud to announce Vincent Commisso ’18 as the sixth recipient of the annual American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) Scholarship.

The ABS Scholarship Program provides financial support to deserving engineering and naval architecture students based on GPA, class rank, leadership ability, and faculty recommendations. The scholarships are part of a broad program at ABS that supports students in the offshore oil and gas and maritime industries. Each year, a Webb student is awarded a full-tuition scholarship and a $2,500 room-and-board stipend. The fifth recipient of the ABS Annual Scholarship was Barr Turner, Jr. who graduated from Webb in June of 2017.

Vincent is a senior student from Wantagh, New York. He has an outstanding academic record and has served the Webb community as a Student Organization President, a member of Webb’s Leadership Committee, and a key member of Webb’s Communications Committee.

“ABS is proud to support the next-generation of young leaders – with the skills to embrace new technologies and quickly adapt to the changing technical landscape in our industry,” said ABS Chairman, President and CEO Christopher J. Wiernicki, and Webb Institute’s Board of Trustees member. “We are proud to partner with Webb Institute and wish the scholarship winners success in their studies and professional pursuits in the exciting digital future of the maritime industry.”

“Vincent is an excellent student and an important member of our campus community,” said Dean Matthew R. Werner. “During his time at Webb, Vincent has shown a commitment to leadership, community service, and professional development. I am confident that Vincent will use his Webb education to become a valuable contributor to the future of the maritime industry.”

Vincent has excelled during his winter internships, a Webb Institute requirement for all students. This experience provides hands-on experience working in shipyards, aboard ships, and in design offices throughout the world. As a freshman, Vincent spent two months in San Diego, California at General Dynamics NASSCO as a shipyard intern. In his sophomore year, he gained insight into ship operations and systems as an engine/deck cadet for MaranGas aboard the Troy. And in his junior year, Vincent interned at Herbert Engineering in Alameda, California. He is currently working on securing an internship for his final Winter Work term.

Upon graduation, Vincent plans to seek employment in the marine industry, earn a PE license, and enroll in welding classes. He is also interested in furthering his education through graduate work in engineering management or business.

“The partnership between ABS and Webb Institute dates back over 100 years, when Stevenson Taylor served as president of both ABS and Webb Institute. This relationship remains as vibrant as ever as we work together to ensure that today’s students, regardless of their financial resources, have access to a naval architecture and marine engineering education of the highest caliber,” said President Keith Michel.

About ABS:
Founded in 1862, ABS is a leading international classification society devoted to promoting the security of life, property, and the marine environment through the development and verification of standards for the design, construction, and operational maintenance of marine-related facilities.

Houston-based Webbies are giving back this holiday season! On Saturday, December 2nd, 2017,  from 0800 to 1200, 19 members of the Webb Alumni Family volunteered at the Houston Food Bank. The volunteer event was organized by Erin McElroy ’15.

The majority of the group was involved with the Houston Food Bank Backpack Buddy program.  The Backpack Buddy program works to fill that gap by providing nutritious, child-friendly food for school children to take home over the weekend.

Through the Backpack Buddy program, the Houston Food Bank, works in partnership with participating schools, schools district delivery sites, and other community partners, to ensure that the food sacks are distributed to children on every Friday during the school year.

About Backpack Buddy Program

About Houston Food Bank

Dean Werner, Assistant Dean Harris, and Professors Martin and Onas attended a Middle States Self-Study Institute in Philadelphia, November 6-8.  The Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) is one of two organizations that accredit Webb Institute.  The workshop focused on the new MSCHE standards for reaccreditation and provided information on the way in which colleges and universities should work toward preparing their next self-study assessment reports.  Webb will submit its self-study report in the fall of 2019, and there will be a team visit and evaluation in the spring of 2020.  For details, see below.

About Middle States Accreditation: 

Purpose of Middle States Accreditation

“Middle States accreditation is an expression of confidence in an institution’s mission and goals, its performance, and its resources.  An institution is accredited when the educational community has verified that its goals are achieved though self-regulation and peer review.  The extent to which each educational institution accepts and fulfills the responsibilities inherent in the process of accreditation is a measure of its commitment to striving for and achieving excellence in its endeavors.”—Standards for Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation, Thirteenth Edition, MSCHE, 2015.

There are fifteen Requirements for Affiliation and seven Standards for Accreditation.  All must be addressed in the design document and the self-study report.  A school’s reaccreditation plan can follow either a Standards or a Priorities approach.  Webb’s self-study will be designed in terms of a Standards approach.  See Standards for Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation (Thirteenth Edition, MSCHE Documents below).

Schedule of upcoming events

• Telephone or Skype conference with MSCHE liaison, Ellie Fogarty, to discuss progress on assessment design document, January 2018
• Progress reports submitted to liaison for comment, January and February 2018
• Webb’s design document completed by March 1, 2018
• Design document submitted to liaison by March 1, 2018
• Liaison responds to design document
• Liaison visits campus to talk with President Michel, representatives from the BOT, faculty, administration, staff, and students, in late March or early April 2018.

Evidence Inventory

Documents pertaining to our assessment process are currently available on campus.  These documents will also become part of Middle State’s Evidence Inventory (EI), a portal that Middle States will create for Webb personnel, both on and off campus; for our liaison; and finally, for the team of peer evaluators who will evaluate our report and visit the campus in early 2020.  In other words, the EI will be an ongoing central repository of all documents pertinent to Webb’s assessment and reaccreditation process.  These documents will be referred to in both the self-study report per se and in the appendices to the report.

Steering Committee

Webb’s Steering Committee, which will direct the various aspects of the assessment process, is composed of the following Webb faculty and staff:

• Assistant Dean Richard Harris and Professor Mike Martin (Co-chairs)
• Dean Matthew Werner
• Professor Adrian Onas, Coordinator of ABET Assessment
• Lauren Carballo, Director of Admissions and Student Affairs
• Rhonda Lightcap, Director of Financial Affairs
• Anthony Zic, Director of Development
• and, in addition,

• Jon LaBerge, Vice Chairman, Webb Institute BOT; Chair of Finance Committee
• Jennifer Waters, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, United States Naval Academy

MSCHE Documents

Following is a list of Middle States documents central to our upcoming self-study report:

• Standards for Accreditation and Requirements of Affiliation (Thirteenth Edition) https://www.msche.org/publications/RevisedStandardsFINAL.pdf

Photo above: Chairman of the Board Bruce Rosenblatt, Professor John C. Daidola, and SNAME President Martin Toyen.

On October 23, 2017, Webb Institute Professor of Structural Engineering, Professor John C. Daidola, P.E., received The David W. Taylor Medal at this year’s SNAME Maritime Convention in Houston, Texas.

The David W. Taylor Medal is the highest award SNAME confers. The award is named after the man who built the first experimental towing tank in the United States, recognizes contributions to the development of future maritime systems through the creation of technology based on research. Professor Daidola was selected for this year’s medal for his notable achievements in naval architecture and marine engineering.

In addition to receiving the David W. Taylor Medal, Professor Daidola presented a paper at the convention on pontoon boat instability in waves. In his paper, Dr. Daidola investigates the stability of pontoon boats running in waves utilizing a quasi-static analysis considering the conditions for stable equilibrium and the limits where instability can be expected.

The variables include the wave environment as well as the principal characteristics of the vessels themselves. The procedure identifies limiting conditions as well as providing a basis for developing vessel proportions appropriate for expected wave conditions. The procedure is applied to several vessel design conditions. The results of this study should be useful in considering both the design of these vessel types as well as identifying limitations for their application.

About Professor John C. Daidola, PhD, P.E:

Dr. John C. Daidola, P.E. is a graduate of University of Michigan and Stevens Institute in naval architecture and marine engineering. He has authored over 80 publications on a variety of subjects of interest to the industry. Dr. Daidola is a licensed engineer, currently registered in eight states. He has been employed by Newport News Shipbuilding, the naval architecture and marine engineering firms of M. Rosenblatt & Sons, Inc., and successors as well as John J. McMullen Associates, and as an Adjunct Professor at Stevens Institute and U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.

Currently, Dr. Daidola is an Assistant Professor of Structural Engineering at Webb Institute and the President of his own naval architecture and marine engineering firm, AENY. He is a Fellow of SNAME and has been active in the organization, including as its first Vice President Technical.

*Photos courtesy of SNAME