end, Maine Maritime had graduated 384 men who served at sea during the war in every theater of operations. These graduates were commissioned as officers in the Merchant Marine and U.S. Naval Reserve, many immediately entering active duty or serving aboard merchant vessels in support of the ongoing war effort under wartime conditions where merchant mariners died at a rate of 1 in 26, which equated to the highest casualty rate of any military service. A World War II memorial at the academy reads "The seas washed over them and they were gone. 6,895 Merchant Mariners, 60 from the State of Maine, and 1,810 members of the U.S. Naval Armed Guard lost their lives in WW II. We shall not forget them."
=== Post-War expansion and development ===
In the post-war era, the program expanded from the original concept to a three-year course of study, and in 1960, to a four-year, Bachelor of Science degree program.
In the 1960s and 70s, Rear Admiral Edward Rodgers, USMS, led a multi-million dollar development program culminating …
