President’s Weekly Messages

We Salute You!

Thursday, November 11, 2021

Dear KCC Students,  

Sometime ago I came across a fascinating blog about Kingsborough.  I was completely taken with the historical portrait of our college that it painted.  From it I learned about our college campus’ storied history with the armed forces and civilians who answered the call to serve.  I learned, that at the start of World War II, long before the idea for the borough’s first community college was born or location identified, our campus was the site of the largest U.S. Maritime Service Training Station in the country. Over 400,000 merchant mariners were trained including Woody Guthrie and Alex Haley.  Hundreds of women were also trained on the grounds of what was to be our campus and on the seas that surround us as part of the  United States Coast Guard (USCG) Women’s Reserve, better known by the acronym SPARS which stood for “Semper Paratus – Always Ready.  

Almost a century later although we are no longer a training ground for men and women to serve or support the military, we are home to hundreds of men and women; students, faculty and staff who answered the call to serve in every branch of military service.  

Today, we pause to thank you all, our veterans for your service. We thank you for your bravery, selflessness and collective efforts in protecting the freedoms we enjoy today.  

KCC student veterans, THANK YOU for living a life of service, first for our country and now for yourself, as you seek to earn a degree, enter the workforce and we have no doubt about this-- make a difference in the world.  We are so proud that you are a part of our college community! 

Thank you to the Office of Military and Veteran Affairs for your incredible support of and advocacy for our veterans.  

With gratitude,

President Schrader