ABYC’s April 2 hybrid event welcomes industry leaders to engage in workforce development
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (March 6, 2025) — The American Boat and Yacht Council (ABYC) will host its next Educator Forum on April 2, bringing together high school and post-secondary educators, administrators, and marine service program leaders. This hybrid event, offering both virtual and in-person attendance in Annapolis, Maryland, provides a collaborative platform to address challenges, share resources, and explore opportunities for students pursuing careers in the marine industry.
For the April event, among other topics, ABYC has enlisted Chelle Travis, executive director of SkillsUSA, a national organization that helps students develop skills for careers in technical, industrial, and trade fields, to speak about the impact of their national and state challenges.
ABYC invites industry leaders passionate about workforce development to join the forum, particularly for the SkillsUSA discussion, to learn how to collaborate with local schools and build a verified talent pipeline of career-ready students. ABYC also encourages businesses to share this event with local schools so they can access valuable resources—whether they are considering launching a marine service program or have a long-established one.
“It’s more important than ever to invest in education and accessible training. Marine industry leaders can participate in the full event or join specific sessions based on their interests. Your support and input will help shape the future of marine training programs and have a lasting impact on workforce development,” said Sarah Devlin, ABYC accreditation director.
At the previous forum, representatives from four leading outboard manufacturers—Yamaha, Honda, Suzuki, and Mercury—shared insights on their strategies to support marine technology programs and emphasized the importance of collaboration in addressing the industry’s technician shortage.
Nick VanNocker, Mercury training development and operations manager, detailed Mercury’s robust support for schools, including curriculum, products, parts, accessories, product donations, and a supplementary textbook. “The only way we can stop this workforce shortage is by the industry coming together,” VanNocker said, stressing the need for collaboration among manufacturers.
To register for the free Educator Forum on April 2, visit teachboats.org/educatorforum or contact Sarah Devlin at [email protected].
To download a postcard to share with local schools, click here.
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Since 1954, the nonprofit American Boat & Yacht Council (ABYC) has developed safety standards for boat design, construction, equipage, repair and maintenance. The essential global source of marine industry technical information, ABYC’s product safety standards, credentialing, education, training, and other tools help members make boating safer.