Prologue Inc. Plans to Open School

On a given school day, there are some 60,000 dropouts roaming the streets of the nation’s third largest city. For 40 years, Prologue Inc. has been a leader in addressing this crisis and providing alternative educational opportunities for young people ages 17-21. The organization’s successes have been chronicled on the Oprah Winfrey Show, the Phil Donahue Show and in prestigious newspapers such as the Washington Post and the Chicago Tribune.

Now, Prologue is presenting another cutting edge concept for Chicago. The organization plans to open the city’s first maritime academy for high school dropouts, hoping it will open their eyes to new educational opportunities and get them jobs in the growing maritime industry.

Prologue officials will be in Toledo this weekend to attend the Great Lakes Maritime Education Symposium to secure best practices that will make their vision, to establish the William Tillman Maritime Academy, a reality.

“Over 60 maritime leaders from across the country will be attending the symposium and the weekend provides an excellent platform for immersive learning in preparing the next generation of Great Lakes mariners,” said Renee Marazon, founder of the Maritime Academy of Toledo. “We are excited to welcome Prologue to learn about our academy and support their plans in Chicago.”

The third annual K-12 Great Lakes Maritime Education Symposium will take place this Friday, April 11, 2014 in Toledo, Ohio. This will be followed by a ribbon cutting ceremony and VIP cocktail reception to unveil the completion of Phase I, a state of the art, Class A full mission bridge and radar classroom simulators on the 2nd floor of One Maritime Plaza, in Downtown Toledo. 

“Using simulation technology and experiential learning to educate the next generation of Great Lakes Mariners” is the theme of the Third Annual K-12 Great Lakes Maritime Education Symposium hosted by The Maritime Academy of Toledo Foundation. Honorable Michael D. Collins, Mayor of Toledo, Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, 9th District Ohio, Renee Marazon, Founder of the Maritime Academy of Toledo, and Dr. Arthur H. Sulzer EdD, Captain USN (Retired) who was recently named by President Obama to the Advisory Board of the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, are some of the many distinguished guests at the symposium. Prologue officials Dr. Nancy Jackson, chief executive officer, Shipmaster Capt. Mark Stevenson, maritime consultant, Ms. Sherri Hal-Rembert, Programs Director, and Mr. William Scott, community engagement consultant will be attending the Symposium and job fair. 

“As leaders in the space of maritime/marine education, the officials at the Maritime Academy of Toledo will be our mentors as we start the various training programs at the William Tillman Maritime Academy,” said Ms. Hal-Rembert. “Therefore we consider it an honor that they invited us to the symposium and offering us a private tour of the Academy.”

The Prologue team, which has been working diligently over the past year towards opening the William Tillman Maritime Academy, is excited to be at the symposium where they will attend educational workshops pertaining to the industry and share information about Prologue, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. The weekend’s events will provide an excellent opportunity for Prologue to showcase the maritime program to those who will be providing the jobs in the industry during the Career/Job placement fair on April 11th.

“The Toledo Academy opened with six students in 2006 and today we have about 225 students attending the courses,” said Mr. Dr. Arthur H. Sulzer, member of the Advisory Board of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation. “As a long-term proponent of maritime/marine school education programs, it is exciting to learn about the William Tillman Academy set to open in Chicago. It was my personal ambition to support maritime education programs in every major city along the Great Lakes and the symposium will bring together community leaders from Detroit, Cleveland and Chicago where new schools/programs are being initiated.”

Dr. Sulzer added, “I commend the Prologue team for their enthusiasm to work diligently in creating a successful maritime school for Chicago youth. They will benefit greatly from the symposium where they can learn from other schools about the new technology and programs that will position Tillman students for the best career opportunities in the industry.”