From Tall Ships to NOAA Command: A Legacy of Learning in the Caribbean

Former GEOG lecturer Joseph Trocino looks back on the department’s 12-year program that combined geography, adventure and mentorship, and inspired remarkable students along the way.

For 12 years, our department sponsored one of the university’s premier faculty-accompanied study abroad programs in the Caribbean. During winter and summer terms, and sometimes through an extra “Terrapin Takeoff” program for incoming freshmen, the department ensured that students from every major gained not only a firsthand, non-cruise-ship experience of the Greater and Lesser Antilles but also a scholarly, hands-on understanding of the physical and cultural geographies of these remarkable islands.

The program was the brainchild of Dean John Townshend, now professor emeritus.

Joseph Trocino steers the helm aboard the clipper ship Stad Amsterdam. 

Since my own career had taken me to the Caribbean, he tapped me with that big Londoner accent of his to organize the programs. In the spirit of the great Oxford dons, his mentoring gave me the confidence to take students, including some from other colleges and universities, island hopping on small aircraft and, by the second year, aboard classic windjammer tall ships.

Aboard the tall ships, the teaching approach had three parts.

First, there was an all-hands geography lesson, sometimes including permanent crew members from the captain down to the cook. Because most participants were not geography majors, my goal was to give them as many practical geographical skills as possible.

Second, everyone was paired with a watch crew. This subtle structure helped students confront and explore the emotions that come with growing into adulthood. I learned that my students could be 21 years old on the outside but still 12 or already 30 on the inside.

Crew members retrieving sails.

Standing a watch is both physical and cerebral. Both take courage. It’s one thing to look up at the yardarms and see the wind push us along. It’s another to climb the ratlines and step out on a single wire cable to set or retrieve the billowing sails. If you can do that confidently, you might later become a skilled surgeon or a trusted engineer.

That leads to the third goal: mentoring. Whether on ships or island hopping, we spent a lot of time packed closely together. This was where we talked about character, and about what it looks like to grow into adulthood as a university graduate with conviction, kindness and intellectual curiosity. We discussed authenticity, integrity, resilience, empathy, ambition and independence.

Lastly, I want to highlight a former student who embodies Dean Townshend’s vision.

Lt. Cmdr. Dustin Picard of the NOAA Science Ship Nancy Foster.

Meet Lt. Cmdr. Dustin Picard, a 2013 graduate with a concentration in marine and coastal management and a minor in leadership. He is a uniformed officer in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps. In service, he has seen duty from Punta Arenas, Chile, to Barrow, Alaska. As a dive master, he explored the Kwajalein Atoll, rich in World War II history. 

Among his many honors is the Department of Commerce’s Gold Medal, the department’s highest award, granted by the secretary of commerce for distinguished performance and extraordinary contributions.

I see Dustin as the apex of the program’s teaching, learning and mentoring. As I write this, he is in command of NOAA Ship Nancy Foster. I watched on my vessel tracker as he recently guided the ship through a busy New York City harbor. At 34 years old, he commands a major research vessel with a crew of 21 plus visiting scientists, all of whom depend on him for their lives at sea.

What a credit to himself and to the efforts of our Department of Geographical Sciences!

Joseph Trocino earned his bachelor’s in urban geography from UMD in 1967 and pursued graduate studies in urban planning at George Washington University. He later taught in the Department of Geographical Sciences and served on the BSOS Board of Visitors.

Main image: NOAA Science Ship Nancy Foster in the New York Harbor. Courtesy of Joseph Trocino

Published on Thu, 10/09/2025 - 10:42