Fort Schuyler_2023_Fall_web

F E A T U R E

SUNY Maritime’s education affords graduates unlimited career possibilities. Dr. Arthur Sulzer IV ’74 likens it to being dealt a hand with three aces in a card game. “That’s a hand you’d tend to hold,” he says. “At graduation, I got three things: a great academic degree, a Naval Reserve commission, and a Coast Guard license. Any of those could give me a full-time career.” He leveraged all three! Three Aces: DR. ARTHUR SULZER ’74

BY DON GALE

S ulzer’s father, Arthur Sulzer, Jr. ’42, sailed as an engineer in World War II and became a Naval Reserve officer. Coming ashore in 1955, he worked in shipbuilding, eventually opening his own surveying and marine construction business in Philadelphia. Sulzer ’74 recalls Sundays with his brother chipping and painting his father’s barges while his mother, a teacher, graded papers. This exposure generated interest in engineering and teaching. “My father’s firm provided port engineering services on the hospital ship USS Hope,” Sulzer says. “I’d had opportunities to work and interact with the crew.” Winning the military draft lottery in 1969 prompted him to pursue national service as an officer and to enroll at SUNY Maritime, a choice further cemented by senior summer employment with the Army Corps of Engineers. Sulzer graduated with a Third Mate license, a BS in Marine Transportation, and his Third Assistant’s license. After sailing with Exxon, Getty, American Export and Farrell Lines, Sulzer returned to Maritime. Sulzer has shared, “Maritime made opportunities for young sailors to take a break from sailing and work as adjunct instructors while continuing education. I took such an opportunity to earn my MS in Transportation Management from Maritime and my MBA in Finance at Hofstra.” Sulzer shares several distinct Maritime memories: “Valetta, Malta, during my MUG cruise, was like a World War II movie scene with all of us uniformed cadets. Senior year, we sailed the new training ship, Empire State V, formerly USNS Barrett, from California. My Dad, former Chief Engineer on her sister ship, accompanied us. As a Marine Transportation instructor, I led rowing and beach landings Friday mornings, a refreshing release from academics.”

After graduation, Sulzer sailed for several years before returning to Maritime to teach and to pursue further education. Here, he is shown aboard General Dynamics-built LNG Virgo in 1980.

Sulzer served in 2003 as Commanding Officer of USNS Comet in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

20 | Fort Schuyler Fall 2023