Cayuga-Onondaga BOCES Outdoor Power Equipment and Powersports Technology Instructor Todd Marcellus, center front, with students in the marine engine mechanic program training area. Credit: Cayuga-Onondaga BOCES

Marine Education Center "pop-up" at 2024 CNY Boat Show focuses on boating industry job opportunities, Boating and beach hazards, boating safety

Contacts:  

Drew Wickham, CNY Boat Show Manager, E: info@cnyboatshow.com, P: (585) 526-5460

Todd Marcellus, Cayuga-Onondaga BOCES, E: tmarcellus@cayboces.org, P: (315) 253-0361 

John Cannaday, NY Sea Grant Great Lakes Recreation & Tourism Specialist, E: jdc378@cornell.edu, P: (315) 849-4436 

John Steinbarge, USCGA, P: 315-447-8077

Kara Lynn Dunn, NYSG's Freelance Great Lakes Publicist, E: karalynn@gisco.net, P: (315) 465-7578


Syracuse, NY, February 5, 2024 – Cayuga-Onondaga BOCES, New York Sea Grant Extension, U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, and Boating Industries Association of Upstate New York have announced the addition of a new Marine Education Center that will have information on marine industry training and careers; boating and beach hazards, and boating safety at the February 15-18, 2024 Central New York Boat Show at the New York State Fairgrounds, 581 State Fair Boulevard, Syracuse, New York. 

The ongoing shortage of skilled marine technicians in the boating industry paired with the tremendous growth in the numbers of new boaters during and post-COVID has led to a need for diversified information and outreach to the boating public. 

The Cayuga-Onondaga BOCES Outdoor Power Equipment and Powersports Technology exhibit at the Marine Education Center “pop-up” will feature information on marine engine mechanic training, internships, and opportunities for job placement in the marine industry for both youth and adults. This program partners with Yamaha Marine University™ as well as Mercury Marine® and other brands. 

The New York Sea Grant exhibit at the Marine Education Center will have boating and beach hazards information available to the public in English and Spanish. New York Sea Grant prepared these bilingual safety resources in partnership with Weather-Ready Nation, the National Weather Service, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration with funding through the National Sea Grant Office.

New York Sea Grant will also have recreational boats on display with the legally required equipment plus additional equipment recommended for clean, safe, and environmentally-friendly boating on New York waters. 

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Auxiliary Flotilla 21 members will be at the Marine Education Center with information on USCG-approved life vests, vessel safety inspections, and boating safety information. 

The Central New York Boat Show is the largest and longest-running boat show in New York. The show features more than 400 all-new models of power and sail boats, personal watercraft, and docks in the Expo Center and Exhibit Center at the NYS Fairgrounds. The 2024 event will have a special section devoted to previously-enjoyed boats. Show hours are 1-9 p.m. on Thursday, February 15, and Friday, February 16; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. on Saturday, February 17; and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sunday, February 18. Admission is $12 per person, 13 and younger free; free parking and shuttle provided. Learn more at www.cnyboatshow.com. 


New York Sea Grant will have boating and beach hazards information available to the public in English and Spanish at the Marine Education Center exhibit of the 2024 CNY Boat Show. Credit: New York Sea Grant


More Info: New York Sea Grant

New York Sea Grant (NYSG), a cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York (SUNY), is one of 34 university-based programs under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program.

Since 1971, NYSG has represented a statewide network of integrated research, education and extension services promoting coastal community economic vitality, environmental sustainability and citizen awareness and understanding about the State’s marine and Great Lakes resources.

Through NYSG’s efforts, the combined talents of university scientists and extension specialists help develop and transfer science-based information to many coastal user groups—businesses and industries, federal, state and local government decision-makers and agency managers, educators, the media and the interested public.

The program maintains Great Lakes offices at Cornell University, SUNY Buffalo, SUNY Oswego and the Wayne County Cooperative Extension office in Newark. In the State's marine waters, NYSG has offices at Stony Brook University and with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Nassau County on Long Island, Brooklyn College and Cornell Cooperative Extension in NYC and Kingston in the Hudson Valley.

For updates on Sea Grant activities: www.nyseagrant.org has RSS, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube links. NYSG offers a free e-list sign up via www.nyseagrant.org/nycoastlines for its flagship publication, NY Coastlines/Currents, which is published quarterly.