WHO'S AT THE HELM OF THE USS PORT OF BROWNSVILLE?

By Juan Montoya
For the first time in its 75-year history, the Port of Brownsville's harbor master's office is vacant.

As the search for a replacement for former harbormaster Tommy Alvarez – a 33-plus year veteran – continues with no fixed closing date for applications, guess who's minding the critical position?

Would you believe a 24-year-old harbor master's assistant whose qualifications would not even make her eligible to apply for the job?

In fact, the only experience Keri A. Dann, the interim harbormaster, has is that she attended the Coast Guard Academy for four years.Then, inexplicably, instead of serving the usual required five years of service, she left the Coast Guard. Her application for harbormaster lists her attendance at the CG Academy as the sole occupation listed in her work experience.

She lists being a personal fitness trainer/substitute teacher and working for a company under contract to the U.S.Army as an instructor on prevention of sexual harassment before being appointed as assistant harbormaster in February 2011.

In short, after Port Director Eddie Campirano placed her at the assistant harbormaster position, she has had a full eight months of on-the-job training to fill the shoes of Alvarez.

Dann has applied for the position and her application is notable for its lack of work experience in the field.
Before she was hired, port sources said she was seen working as an attendant at a Laguna Vista golf course.
However, when she was hired by Campirano at the port, he placed her at a$56,000 pay scale. Today, with scant experience at the critical post, she is drawing $65,000 as interim harbor master.

The port's job listing states that the harbor master candidate should have graduated " from a four-year college or university with coursework in Marine Transportation, Public or Business Administration, or a closely related field, with a minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience as a Harbormaster, Assistant Harbormaster, or program management or supervisory capacity."

Is it mere coincidence that, in her resume and Facebook page, she lists "program management" as her specialty at the coast Guard?
The requirements also call for the candidate to know the "principles, practices and techniques involved in the operation of a large maritime trade facility; the principles and practices of public administration, including budgeting and billing systems. General principles of planning skills in management; thorough knowledge of local, state, and federal laws governing marine/harbor facilities; be computer literate with knowledge of word processing and spreadsheet software applications (i.e. Microsoft Windows; software applications such as Word, Excel);and possess"excellent and effective oral and written communication skills;and be bilingual(Spanish-English).
"It's obvious that she doesn't possess even a semblance of those requirements,"said a port staffer. Where do they find these people? And how – at 24 – did she manage to wrangle position? Aren't there any local UTB graduates who could have been chosen instead?"

Another opening at the port is that of Chief of Police for the Port's seven-officer police force.

After former chief George Gavito resigned for unspecified reasons, the job has been handled by Campirano who uses the two police force sergeants as liasions for his command.

But according to the job description,the chief must have a Texas Peace Officer‟s License, must be bonded, must pass a pre-employment physical exam, drug screening and background investigation, and possess a Master's degree in criminal justice, public administration with a minimum of 18 years of experience as a Chief of Police.

It is widely believed that the job will go to Brownsville Police Dept.Chief Carlos Garcia,who was one of 25 applicants.

For now, however, with Campirano stretched thinly to perform all his other duties, and with a 24-year-old inexperienced harbormaster at the helm, should we start stacking the deck chairs on the Titanic?