At the end of Black History Month 2024, we share the story of a town hall ceremony on February 2 to mark the start of Black History Month recognitions.
In honor of Black History Month, Vito Fosella, the President of Staten Island Borough, issued a proclamation declaring February 2 as "Captain Zeita Merchant Day."
He expressed his gratitude to the captain on behalf of Staten Island's 500,000 residents during a farewell ceremony that was live-streamed on Facebook.
In the autumn of 2023, U.S. Representative Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) congratulated Captain Zeita Merchant on her historic appointment as Rear Admiral (lower half) in the United States Coast Guard (USCG) via a statement.
After assuming the rank of Rear Admiral during the Coast Guard's Change of Command exercises scheduled for April 2024, Captain Merchant will assume a new position in Washington D.C.
Captain Merchant, who won the 2011 K-12 promotion of education, is the first African American woman to be selected for Flag rank in the Coast Guard's 233-year history.
She currently serves as the commander of USCG Sector New York, where she is responsible for ensuring the safety and security of one of the busiest and most economically significant port complexes in the United States.
She has held a variety of positions at the operational and executive levels, earning recognition as an authority in maritime safety, security, and crisis management.
She is also one of the Coast Guard's top emergency managers, leading nationwide large-scale, multi-jurisdictional incident responses.
Merchant has received recognition for her outstanding role during critical responses at sea, including her selection as a strategic planner for the first National Incident Command (NIC) for the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.
Furthermore, she has demonstrated exceptional operational expertise in marine incidents, such as an offshore collision of two loaded chemical tankers, a 1,900-gallon heavy fuel oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and a joint interagency boarding on a foreign vessel that resulted in the unit's first-ever narcotic seizure valued at over $1.3 million.
In addition to her operational expertise, Merchant holds a Doctorate of Business Administration, a Master of Quality Systems Management, a Master of Public Administration, and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from various institutions.
She has also served as a National Security Fellow at Harvard University's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Seminar XXI National Security and Foreign Affairs Fellow.
Aside from her operational excellence, Captain Merchant is an admirable role model. She served on the Maritime Industry Advisory Board of Texas Southern University's Maritime Transportation Program and was a frequent guest speaker.
As the Coast Guard's Ambassador to the university, she has played a vital role in enhancing outreach and recruitment of well-qualified students in science, engineering, technology, operations, logistics, and mathematics.
