Vallejo, CA – California State University Maritime Academy (Cal Maritime) is proud to be part of a new Stanford University project supported by a prestigious Humanities Initiatives Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). This two-year effort aims to develop an innovative Oceanic Humanities program integrating humanities scholarship with ocean science, with Cal Maritime helping to show the added value of incorporating practical maritime education and experiential learning.

Professor Colin Dewey, who teaches English and leads the Department of Culture and Communication at Cal Maritime, is a key contributor to the initiative. A member of the Cal Maritime faculty since 2013 with over 30 years of experience in the maritime industry, he was recently honored by election as a Fellow of The Nautical Institute. Dewey’s commitment to advancing maritime education and professional development is well established; his expertise helps ensure that practical maritime knowledge and humanities scholarship are seamlessly connected.

The project is led by Stanford University’s Margaret Cohen, Andrew B. Hammond Professor of French Language, Literature, and Civilization in the Department of English, and Fiorenza Micheli, David and Lucile Packard Professor of Marine Science. Cal Maritime brings expertise in humanities teaching and research in a STEM-focused, experiential learning environment. As part of the collaboration, Cohen and Micheli will visit Cal Maritime to meet faculty, students, and institutional leaders, deepening their understanding of the unique culture and pedagogy at Cal Maritime. This exchange will help shape an adaptable, interdisciplinary curriculum suitable for diverse academic environments, from major research universities to specialized institutions like Cal Maritime.

Cal Maritime’s involvement highlights its efforts to incorporate the humanities with ocean science and applied maritime studies. The NEH review panel recognized the “enthusiastic institutional support both from the Stanford administration as well as their partner, California State University Maritime Academy.” The panel further noted that “With the creation of a first-of-its-kind program in oceanic humanities, the project will have a significant impact by attracting a wider audience of students and other scholars to the study of the humanities. Partnering with Cal Maritime provides an additional opportunity to widen the intellectual scope of the program.”

For more information, please contact:
Colin Dewey, cdewey@csum.edu