The Captain School New Orleans, a USCG approved school, is operated by Dr. Mark and Kim Woods. We formed our Captain School Key West school in 2013, after Mark retired from the Florida Keys Community College as Program Director of Marine Engineering. In 2020, we teamed up with the City of Miami Fire Department Fire College to bring our one-of-a-kind learning platform to Coconut Grove, Miami. In 2023, we opened a new location in Merritt Island. And in 2024, we will be taking over the Captain School New Orleans in Merraro!!
Dr. Mark, a retired Navy Diver/Nuclear Engineer (Submariner 21 yrs), has owned and operated dive charter businesses since 1985 in Idaho Falls, Guam, Washington State, South Carolina, Chicago and the Florida Keys. Mark has a PhD in Adult Education with a Masters in Learning and Teaching with Technology and has been a Florida Keys resident since 2004.
His wife, Captain Kim is a retired Network Engineer and former owner of Teal Technologies, Inc. She has lived in the Keys full-time since 2001 and became a licensed Captain in 2007. She currently holds a 200GT Near Coastal License.
Our main classroom is in Key West, FL, however we do teach throughout the Florida Keys, Mississippi, North Carolina, Maine, Coconut Grove, Miami, FL, Merritt Island and New Orleans!!!
We also provide specialized professional training for:
Navy (SWIC)
Army (Special Forces)
FBI (Hostage Recovery Team)
National Parks and Services
ATMO
Metson Marine Services Group and many more. We are available for all of your contract training needs!
Captain School Key West, Captain School Miami and Captain School Merritt Island are the only schools that teach and tests with current charts and current navigational publications in the classroom! And YES, you test with us!
We offer 3 different types of training to meet your individual needs. Now you can choose between Traditional Classroom Training, On-the-Water Training, Online Training or a combination of all! Should you decide to switch to another format, you only pay the difference in price and a change fee. You do not lose your money!
Courses include: 6pack (OUPV), Masters up to 200/500GT, Sail/Tow Endorsements, MROP, GMDSS, CPR/1st Aid/AED, STCW Basic Training, STCW BT Revalidation, Crowd/Crisis, GMDSS, Security and Celestial Navigation.
Mark and Kim’s mission is to provide a learning experience that all levels of mariners can benefit. Our motto, ‘Mentoring the Modern Mariner’ applies to all levels of marine: military, commercial, and recreational.