The following is text of a news release from the State University of New York (SUNY) Maritime College:
(THROGGS NECK, N.Y.) — Every year, SUNY Maritime College hosts its Admiral’s Scholarship Dinner to honor industry executives and raise funds to help the next generation of leaders earn their degrees and U.S. Coast Guard licenses.
The dinner continues to attract increasing numbers of alumni, friends of the college and maritime professionals. For the second year in a row, demand for tickets has been so high that the event was moved off campus to accommodate guests who come to meet current students, hear from campus administrators, and honor exceptional alumni and other professionals.
The May 1 dinner honored three individuals and their two companies: Dr. James S.C. Chao, founder and honorary chairman of Foremost Group and his daughter, Angela Chao, current chairman and CEO of Foremost Group; and Joseph Byrne ’89, vice president and senior operations manager of Turner Construction Co.
Another notable dinner attendee was Adm. Mark Buzby, administrator of the Maritime Administration.
A Chinese immigrant, Dr. James S.C. Chao founded Foremost Group in New York in 1964, and today it is one of the most respected global shipping firms. Foremost has one of the youngest and most environmentally friendly shipping fleets in the world. It is an industry leader recognized for its superior management and performance. Chao has received innumerable awards for his professional accomplishments and philanthropy. For his lifetime contributions, Chao was inducted into the U.S. International Maritime Hall of Fame at the United Nations. Chao and his late wife, Ruth Mulan Chu Chao, have dedicated their lives to promoting education and philanthropy. More than 5,000 students have been awarded scholarships through their generosity. The Chao Foundation’s Mulan Educational Scholarship Fun helps students from the National Taiwan Ocean University pursue graduate degrees at SUNY Maritime College.
Before taking the helm of Foremost Group, Angela Chao worked in the mergers and acquisitions department of what is now Morgan Stanley Smith Barney. She holds an undergraduate degree from Harvard and earned her master's of business adminitration degree from Harvard Business School in 2001, after which she rejoined Foremost Group, first concentrating on the fundamentals of ship operations and ship management while overseeing the implementation of Foremost’s safety management system to comply with the International Safety Management (ISM) Code and the fleet’s vessel security plans in compliance with the IMO’s International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code. This year she was named chairman and CEO of Foremost Group.
Turner Construction is international and scope, completing $14 billion of work every year. During his career at Turner, Byrne has worked on high-profile projects including Madison Square Garden, the Whitney Museum of American Art and Yankee Stadium. A veteran, he leads Turner’s Veteran GiveBack Network and related programs. Byrne actively supports the Maritime College community, recruiting current students and recent graduates for positions at Turner.
