USMMA - Key Persons
CAPT Mike Stroud assumed the position of Commandant of Midshipmen in October of 2016.
CAPT Stroud was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the Marine Corps following his graduation from Officer Candidate School in 1989. His major assignments have been first as the logistics officer for 3rd Battalion 1st Marines at Camp Pendleton, CA. During this tour, CAPT Stroud participated in Desert Shield/Storm/Saber. Additionally he deployed to Los Angles for the LA riots and a deployment with the first 31st MEU in Okinawa, Japan as the BLT S-4 officer. CAPT Stroud was then assigned to 1st Landing Support Battalion where he served as the Logistics Officer, the Assistant Operations Officer, and finally the Commanding Officer, Company A. He was then selected as an instructor at the Logistics Officer School in Little Creek, Virginia where he taught the Combat Service Support courses. In 1998, he was ordered back to Camp Pendleton where he served as the 1st Marine Division G-4 Plans Officer and then was selected as the Logistics Officer for the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit. During this tour of duty CAPT Stroud actively participated in operations in Southern Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. His final permanent change of station was to Tampa, FL where he reported to United States Central Command J4 where he completed multiple tours in Iraq as part of the Central Command Operations and Planning Group. His final tour of duty was with U.S. Marine Forces Central Command as the Chief of Logistics Plans where he was actively involved in all planning for Marines Forces deployed in the Middle East.
He is a graduate of Army Airborne School, Amphibious Warfare School, Naval War College where was awarded Masters of Arts degree in National Security and Strategic Studies.
After retiring in 2009, he was hired as a Regimental Battalion Officer and Assistant Football Coach at SUNY Maritime College. He was soon promoted to Senior Battalion Officer in the Regiment of Cadets and to the Defensive Coordinator of the Maritime Football Team. He was responsible for providing leadership, guidance, training and discipline of student cadets necessary to command and control cadets in a military organizational structure.
His personal decorations include the Bronze Star, Defense Meritorious Service medal, two Meritorious Service Medals, DOT Superior Achievement (Bronze) Medal, three Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medals, and the Combat Action Ribbon.
He is married to his wife Taleen and they have two daughters, Breanna and Alexia.
Captain Ceraolo assumed duties as the Chief of Staff of the United States Merchant Marine Academy on August 27, 2023.
Tony Ceraolo spent 34 years in the U.S. Coast Guard before retiring in July 2023. He had the honor of commanding multiple Coast Guard (CG) cutters and large ashore units throughout his career. Prior to retiring, he served as the Executive Assistant to the Coast Guard Deputy Commandant for Operations (DCO). In that role, he served as a principal advisor to Vice Admiral Pete Gautier, and as de facto Chief of Staff for a DCO Enterprise comprised of 3.2 thousand personnel and an $800M budget across 5 CG Assistant Commandant and 9 Headquarters directorates in the creation of CG strategy, operations policy, budget formulation, doctrine, capabilities, and requirements.
Earlier in his career, he served as a Senior Counselor to the Secretary of Homeland Security where he spearheaded and coauthored DHS's first ever Strategic Approach for Arctic Homeland Security (DHS Arctic Strategy - signed in 2021); as well as Director for Maritime Security and Director for Arctic Region Policy on the National Security Council (NSC) Staff at the White House. While on the NSC, he was instrumental in developing Presidential Policy Directive-18 updating national maritime security policy, and developing the United States' first-ever National Strategy for the Arctic Region in 2013. He also served as Military Assistant and Policy Assistant to Department of Transportation Secretary Mary Peters, and was responsible for a portfolio that included the Maritime Administration.
His command experience includes service as Commanding Officer of two Coast Guard cutters - an 82' patrol boat in California; and a 140' domestic icebreaking vessel on the Great Lakes; as well as a deployment as Commander of U.S. Coast Guard Patrol Forces Southwest Asia - the Coast Guard's largest command outside the continental United States; and, as Sector Commander and Captain of the Port for San Francisco and Northern California.
A native of Nesconset, Long Island, New York, Ceraolo graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1993 with honors, and received a Master in Public Administration from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government in 2003; and, a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies with Distinction from the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island in 2006. He is also a graduate of the Joint Forces Staff College and is a permanent cutterman and Eagle Scout. He is married to the former Lisa M. Tinker, a retired CG Reserve Commander. They are the proud parents of a daughter, Rosalia.
John "Jack" D. Noonan, is a maritime industry professional with over 40 years of experience, and served most recently as the CEO of Chembulk Tankers prior to which he was its President and Chief Operating Officer. He played a critical leadership role during the 2012-2015 corporate restructuring of Chembulk Tanker parent company. Currently, he provides consulting services through Binnacle Maritime LLC, his privately-owned company.
Captain Noonan is a 1978 USMMA graduate where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Marine Transportation, with a concentration in Marine Petroleum Operations. He is a member of several professional associations and serves on the Board of Trustees of the Seamen's Church Institute. He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences. The Connecticut Maritime Association bestowed on him the prestigious title of Commodore in 2017, its highest honor. Additionally, in 2017, he was also named the USMMA Alumnus of the Year.
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Chairman of the USMMA Advisory Board
Dr. Marcus is Professor Emeritus of Marine Systems at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he has taught and performed research in the marine transportation area since 1971. His research focused on the interface between technology and other disciplines, such as management, economics, policy and law. He began in the Ocean Engineering Department which has now been merged with the Department of Mechanical Engineering, and was the Chairman of MIT's graduate program in Ocean Systems Management for many years. In addition, he held the title of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Professor of Ship Acquisition for a decade.
Professor Marcus has a B.S. degree from Webb Institute of Naval Architecture, two M.S. degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a doctorate from Harvard Business School. He is a renowned scholar, a prolific author and has served as a member of the Marine Board, the Federal Transportation Advisory Group, and the Marine Transportation Systems National Advisory Council. In 2013 the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers awarded Professor Marcus the William H. Webb Medal for outstanding contributions to education.
Job Titles:
- Member of the USMMA Advisory Board
- McDevitt Distinguished Chair
Martha R. Grabowski is the McDevitt Distinguished Chair in Information Systems, and Professor and Director of the Information Systems program in the Madden School of Business at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, New York. A current member and incoming vice chair/chair of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine's Transportation Research Board/Marine Board and a member of the American Bureau of Shipping, she is a Lifetime National Associate of the National Academies and recently chaired the National Academies' policy study assessing the U.S. Arctic Oil Spill Response capabilities for 8 sponsoring agencies.
Dr. Grabowski is a former licensed Merchant Mariner and a retired Lieutenant Commander in the Navy Reserve. She is a 1979 USMMA graduate, where she earned a B.S. in Marine Transportation. She earned an M.B.A., an M.S. in Industrial Engineering, and a Ph.D. in Management/Information Systems from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Dr. Grabowski is a prolific author and has published extensively in several scholarly journals.
Job Titles:
- Member of the USMMA Advisory Board
- Manager of PrimeServe Los Angeles Workshop for MAN Diesel
Benjamin Inouye is Manager of PrimeServe Los Angeles Workshop for MAN Diesel and Turbo of North America. Mr. Inouye is currently responsible for oversight and renovation and commissioning of a new production facility in Los Angeles, manages a multi-national team of service engineers for field service and workshop production, and is responsible for management of sales, procurement, shipping and invoicing, serving as both technical expert and personnel manager. Prior to his time with MAN Diesel, Mr. Inouye worked afloat and ashore in engineering positions with distinguished companies such as Chembulk Tankers and Chevron USA.
Mr. Inouye is a 2010 USMMA graduate of distinction, where he earned a B.S. in Marine Engineering Systems with a Minor in Electrical Engineering. At the Academy, he held key leadership positions such as the Varsity Soccer Team Captain and Regimental Executive Officer, and was also the Class President and holds a commission in the U.S. Navy Reserves.
Job Titles:
- Member of the USMMA Advisory Board
Mr. Starer is a 1967 USMMA graduate. He earned his J.D. from Albany Law School of Union University in 1972 and is a member of the International, Inter-Pacific, and American Bar Associations and the American Bar Foundation. He is a widely published author of many articles on maritime law and is a recipient of repeated domestic and international accolades as a top-tier business lawyer in his field. He serves on the Maritime Law Association's Committee on Navigation and Coast Guard and Government Regulation.
Job Titles:
- Member of the USMMA Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the USMMA Advisory Board
- President and Chief Operating Officer of Wallenious Wilhelmson Solutions
- President and Chief Operating Officer, Wallenious Wilhelmson Solutions - WCL, NJ / Mendham, NY
Raymond Fitzgerald is the current President and Chief Operating Officer of Wallenious Wilhelmson Solutions. Prior to this, Mr. Fitzgerald served as the Chief Executive Officer of American Roll-on Roll-off Carriers, Chief Operating Officer and President of American Shipping and Logistics, and Vice President in various divisions at Crowley American Transport. He is also the current Chairman of the Board for American Roll-on Roll-off Carriers Group and Ocean Exchange.
Mr. Fitzgerald graduated from St. Francis University in Loretto, PA in 1984, earning a double major B.S. in Economics and Business Management, with a focus in Finance and has completed multiple Executive Management Programs at prestigious institutions.
Job Titles:
- Member of the USMMA Advisory Board
- Founder and CEO of Women Offshore
Ms. Cedeno is the founder and CEO of Women Offshore, LLC, an online organization and resource center that supports and, mentors women employed in the maritime and offshore energy industries. She is also actively pursuing an operational career in the maritime and offshore sectors of the industry.
Ms. Cedeno is a 2008 USMMA graduate, where she earned her B.S. in Logistics and Intermodal Transportation, and served in several leadership roles such as Regimental Waterfront Officer and Varsity Sailing Team Co-captain. She is currently working toward her M.B.A. with a concentration in Energy, and is on track to graduate from Rice University, Jones Graduate School of Business, in 2020.