PORTSMOUTH, Ohio — A national maritime education program is bringing the river to the classroom on Wednesday, giving students from across the region a firsthand look at the careers that keep America’s inland waterways moving.
We Work the Waterways, partnering with Future Plans through Best Ohio, is hosting a Maritime Interaction Day at the Portsmouth Welcome Center — putting students face-to-face with professionals from the maritime, shipping, and logistics industries through hands-on demonstrations and interactive stations set up along what the organizers are calling an Explorer Dock.
Students will take part in line handling, equipment demonstrations, safety exercises and navigation concepts. Industry professionals representing vessel operations, engineering, logistics and marine services will walk them through what those careers actually look like day to day.
Portsmouth, situated along the Ohio River, sits at the heart of an inland waterways network that supports energy, manufacturing and logistics operations across the region. Organizers say that connection is exactly the point.
“We bring the industry to the students,” said Errin Howard, executive director of We Work the Waterways. “Our goal is to help young people understand how vital the maritime industry is to communities like Portsmouth and show them that there are meaningful, well-paying career opportunities connected to their region.”
Industry partners taking part include Shawnee State University, American Electric Power, Mountwest Maritime Academy, Crounse Corporation, Seamen’s Church Institute and several others.