Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology

Contact: Skip Burdon at ABYC

(410) 990-4460, x25

Contact: Caryn Vinson at The Boat School

(207) 853-2518

DETC Approves Westlawn Institute’s New Eastport, ME Campus

July 16, 2010, Annapolis, MD and Eastport, ME: The Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology and The Boat School are pleased to announce that DETC (the Distance Education and Training Council, based in Washington, DC) has inspected and approved Westlawn Institute’s new offices in Eastport, Maine.

On June 23, 2010, DETC executive director, Mike Lambert, personally conducted the site inspection of the Westlawn Institute office on the second floor of the Boat School shop building. After reviewing Westlawn’s operations and set-up with Westlawn director Dave Gerr, Lambert also toured the shop and classroom facilities of The Boat School, guided by Boat School instructor Brian Duffy.

In his report to the DETC Accrediting Committee, Mike Lambert stated, “The synergies between the boat-centric City of Eastport, The Boat School and Westlawn are already producing results, with Westlawn staff providing guest lecturers to the Boat School.”

“Not only is the Eastport and The Boat School a prefect fit for Westlawn Institute,” noted Westlawn director Dave Gerr, “but everyone we’ve met in Eastport as been incredibly helpful. Whether it’s been city manager Jon Southern, city council president, Bob Peacock, or chief of police Matt Vinson, or the staff at The Boat School (Caryn Vinson, Bob Turcotte, and the other faculty members), or the wonderful proprietors at Raye’s Mustard, New Friendly, or The Pickled Herring (to mention just a few), everyone has gone out of their way to make Westlawn welcome.”

In the evening, Mike Lambert and his wife Carol joined Westlawn director Dave Gerr; Boat School office manager Caryn Vinson and her husband police chief Matt Vinson; city council president Bob Peacock and his wife Jeanne; and adjunct Boat School instructor, Dean Pike for a wonderful dinner at The Pickled Herring. The group presented Mike and Carol with personalized mustards from Raye’s.

“Thank you so much for all you did to make us feel so genuinely welcome in Eastport, Maine’s best kept little secret,” said Mike Lambert.

On July 6, 2010, Westlawn Institute received its revised certificate of accreditation from DETC finalizing Westlawn’s official move to Eastport Maine.

“Westlawn Institute is the oldest school in the U.S. teaching boat design,” said Westlawn director Gerr. “We have always been 100% distance learning and distance learning only, so we don’t have classes on site. It can seem like there’s not a lot going on, but we have over 200 students all over the world. There’s a great deal happening behind the scenes. We could be located anywhere, but we chose Eastport as the best fit for Westlawn’s mission, and we’re proud to be new citizens of the City of Eastport.”

(Westlawn Institute is an independent educational partner of The Boat School. Though Westlawn and The Boat School collaborate, they are wholly sperate institutions.)

Founded in 1930, the Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology is the only nationally accredited distance-learning school of small-craft design in the United States. As the not-for-profit educational affiliate of the American Boat and Yacht Council, the mission of the Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology is threefold:

■ To provide our students with the skills and knowledge required to build a rewarding career in the profession of yacht and small-craft naval architecture.

■ To support continued growth of the recreational and small-craft marine community through the development of well-trained, safety-oriented, boat designers developing better products for the benefit of the boating public.

■ To provide continuing education to marine-industry professionals.

To learn more about Westlawn, please call (207) 853-6600 or visit the Westlawn website at: www.westlawn.edu.